Under the Bridge
by JillRJohnson
Summary: Crossover with All My Children. Peyton gets into trouble with Rick. While running from the hell that is her life, she ends up in Pine Valley. She is soon caught up to by Brooke. Breyton frienshiplove. They befriend AMC's Maggie and Bianca...


-1**Author's Note:** this is a crossover of One Tree Hill and All My Children.

The AMC part of the story comes from a few years ago after Bianca had been raped. Maggie was seeing Jonathan. This storyline follows a different path than that one. There is no baby switch because there was never a baby. Bianca was raped and everything with Michael Cambias happened. Maggie did fall in love with Binx, confessed her feelings only to have Binx semi-reject her because of her lives-in-Poland girlfriend that she's supposedly in love with. Maggie has "moved on" from Binx to the wicked Jonathan. Jonathan has asked Maggie not to see or talk to Bianca as much and Maggie has reluctantly agreed. She has her reasons and good ones at that.

The One Tree Hill side of the story deals mainly with the characters of Peyton and Brooke. The storyline is basically the same as was seen on OTH last year only I'm taking the "Peyton did a line of coke" thing a little further. The storyline veers away from the show at that point. It's AU. This story finds Peyton running away from her life in Tree Hill and ending up in Pine Valley, Pennsylvania. Who will she open up to? Who will realize what's truly at stake in their life? Who will Peyton save? And who will save Peyton?

**Under the Bridge**

By Jill R. Johnson

Part 1

_**The light was green as I sat there waiting for it to turn red. I always wondered how it would feel to die the same way my mother did. A horrible car crash. The outside world faded as the engine idled. I was getting impatient as the light stayed green. How could I test the fates if the damn light wouldn't turn red in order for me to run it? **_

"_**Why do you do this?" I turned to see Lucas leaning in my window. It was hard to ignore the worried expression in his sweet eyes, but I didn't care about anything at that moment except for making sure I didn't miss running the red light. **_

_**He got in my car and shut the door. I couldn't help but turn cold eyes to him, "If I were you, I'd get back out now."**_

_**His jaw was set, "Not until you tell me what's going on."**_

_**His distraction almost worked to pull my eyes from the light, but I caught it changing and slammed down the gas pedal. It was my ritual. It was my self-punishment. My mother had not made it through the red light and it killed her. I on the other hand made it every time. **_

_**He was scared sitting in the passenger seat next to me. I could almost smell the fear, "Come on! Slow down, Peyton! Come on! Slow the car down! Peyton? Slow the car down."**_

_**I wanted to cry, but my tears never fell in front of others, "She was driving to school to pick me up. She was late, so she ran a red light. It was one light at the wrong split second and it ended for her."**_

_**I slowed the car down, finally stopping. I couldn't bear to look at Lucas Scott, so instead I stared straight ahead. "My mom ran one red light. I run them all the time and nothing happens. It's not fair."**_

"_**No it's not." His voice was too soft for me to bear. His concern and caring made my skin burn with shame and I couldn't stand another second of being in the same car with him. He cared too much. He cared more than Brooke had cared. Brooke hadn't even remembered the day. Nathan hadn't even known how or when my mom had died. No one cared. Except maybe Lucas.**_

"_**You can get out now," my voice was low and scratchy and I knew I wanted to cry. I wouldn't let him see it. I only cried in front of one person, Brooke Davis, and since she was too shallow and involved in cheerleading to care, I wanted to be alone. **_

_**He didn't get the point, "Or I can stay if you want."**_

"_**No. You can't."**_

I thought about Lucas a lot as I drove away from the place I had called home for 17 years. Tree Hill was a beautiful dot on the map. A small town in North Carolina filled with beaches and trees and good old-fashioned values. It was also filled with lies, hurt, backstabbing and death. Mostly, it was filled with fear…the fear of never knowing anything other than Tree Hill.

I-70 was a long road. At least it felt like I had been on it forever. But I guess things always seem to take forever when you're running away from something. It's hard to hide when the world wasn't even looking for you.

I thought about Brooke Davis, my best friend. Her picture was stapled to the visor above my seat in the car. She was smiling back at me. A gorgeous grin with pearly white teeth. A smile that hid as much as mine had. Brooke and I were best friends, but the truth was, we didn't know anything about one another. It was that thought that made me the saddest, because had Brooke known what had been happening, she would have never have thrown me to the sharks.

I held her blameless though. Everything that had occurred had happened through my own misadventures. Everything was my own fault, and if I ever blamed Brooke for anything, it was for not coming to me when she had her own life changing moment. The darkness we shared, it was unimaginable.

Tired of tearing up at the mere image of Brooke my eyes drifted back to the lines of the highway and my mind wandered to my mother. I would miss being able to visit the cemetery to talk to her. It was the only place I felt she could truly listen. Of course, after everything I had been doing, she probably would not want to speak to me any way. My mother would be disappointed if she knew the kind of person I was becoming. Hell, I was disappointed.

I wanted to tell someone what was going on. I wanted to sit down with Brooke and cry in front of her and tell her how it had all just started with one line of coke. One snowy white line on a mirror had caused the eclipse that had blackened our lives.

_**I stood there standing across the bar from the band's manager, Rick. He was opening a beer and smiling at me as though he were amused by me. I didn't let his condescending gaze unsettle me as I smirked back at him.**_

_**He nodded, "The job doesn't end getting the band, you know? You got to take care of them. You got to be part cheerleader, part babysitter, part therapist."**_

_**He offered me a beer and I declined. I liked beer but I had made a pact with myself to be more responsible, whatever that meant. I thought about what he was saying. I could be all three of those things. After all, I had been Brooke's friend for 7 years. Being Brooke's friend meant being a cheerleader, doing a lot of babysitting and definitely being a therapist.**_

_**I almost smiled at the thought. "It's no problem, I can handle that."**_

_**The manager looked at me sceptically as though I were five years old. I suddenly wanted nothing more than to prove to this Rick guy that I was an adult who could handle anything that came my way. His expression seemed to challenge my stance and I could almost feel my shoulders sag with the weight of my inexperience.**_

"_**What I'm saying is, you got to look after all their needs; food, drink, drugs."**_

_**I know he must have seen the shocked expression on my face. I had only one experience with drugs and that was when an over-eager college boy had slipped me a roofie at a part the year before. "Um…drugs?"**_

_**He smiled as though he had won some contest, "Oh, don't worry. I'll set you up with the guys I buy from."**_

_**Suddenly I felt way in over my head and even more so when he pulled a small box from behind the counter. He opened it and placed a small mirror on top of the bar. He poured a pure white powder onto the glass of the mirror and looked up at me defiantly.. **_

_**He continued to talk, "They're reliable. I mean, they're drug dealers, you don't want to mouse it or anything."**_

_**I could tell he wanted me to try it. Everything in my soul was telling me to run while I had the chance. But somewhere within, this darkness inside of me, it grabbed a hold of me and wouldn't let me take a step. **_

_**Rick's voice was almost mesmerizing, "…But…they won't burn you." He cut the cocaine with a razor blade. I felt as though I was the one being sliced into thousands and thousands of miniscule grains. "I got a good sense about people. You're young ,but you…might be worth the risk."**_

_**He rolled up a dollar bill and handed it to me. My voice was almost too heavy for me to lift out of my mouth, "No thanks."**_

_**It sounded more like a question than a response. Rick was sly and even as my mind was telling me that he was leading me to the beginning of hell, he pushed the mirror to me, "Here's your shot kid. What do you say?"**_

_**I had nothing to say. It was like an out-of-body experience as I slid over to the bar and looked at him. I know he was reading every ounce of fear and self-loathing in my hazel eyes. The blonde curls I had grown to live with fell in my face as I leaned down with the rolled dollar bill poised just above the white powder. **_

_**My brain was screaming at me. I had never touched anything stronger than Jack Daniels before and my mind and body were pleading with me not to start now. But my soul, it ached for one moment, one split second of reckless abandon. My soul wanted to participate in something other than the Woes According to Peyton Sawyer. **_

_**And so I inhaled. I settled the end of the rolled dollar bill into the white powder and inhaled as though it was something I had done a million times before. Rick smiled proudly at me, like I was his kid and I had just one an athletic competition. **_

_**When I looked at him defiantly, daring him to treat me as anything other than an adult, he smirked his appreciation for my performance. I hated him then and there, but that didn't stop me from dusting off the end of my nose and then shaking his hand. A deal was a deal, and I had made one with the devil. **_

I stopped at the gas station to fill up my car. I shook my head at the gas prices and laughed at the economy. It was ridiculous. I grabbed a Mountain Dew and a bag of Salt and Vinegar Chips and paid the attendant. I ignored his lustful stare. He was cute enough, but there was something crazy about his dark brown eyes and I had had enough of crazy.

I settled back in my car after a quick restroom break and I leaned my head on the steering wheel. The image of me snorting a line of drugs was nothing compared to the other images I had collected over the previous months. Nothing at all.

Several hours after I tried my first line of cocaine…I lied to Brooke, blatantly. I had wanted to tell her then that I had snorted a line of coke. I wanted her to tell me how stupid it was and to yell at me and tell me that I needed help. I wanted her to admonish me for screwing up and for putting myself in danger. But I didn't give her the chance.

I started the car and veered back onto the highway. Traffic was light, as it should be on a quiet Saturday morning. I didn't know where I was heading at all, but I knew wherever it was, I was going to start over. Start all over and become what I should have been all along. I could feel the tears on my cheeks as once again, I thought about my best friend.

_**Brooke was sad. Money was her fortitude and her parents had lost it all. She had just gotten through telling me about how broke they were and how her checking and savings accounts were frozen. To anyone else, this might have seemed like a minor setback in life, but for Brooke Davis it was huge. **_

_**She finally brushed off talking about herself, and I noticed for the first time, that it was something she often did. I couldn't believe that I had not noticed it before, because Brooke always seemed to be talking about herself. But in reality, Brooke was always talking around herself. I was beginning to realize the true Brooke. She was beautiful and protective and I could never compare to the soul I was beginning to see within her.**_

_**She turned the conversation to me, which she often did, "How was your meeting?"**_

_**My nose still felt different, as though I had inhaled sin itself, "It's not going to work out."**_

_**I should tell her. I know I should have. I wanted to more than I wanted anything else in the world, but that look in her eyes, that sweet, gentle, sincere gaze, it broke me somewhere inside and I found it impossible to speak the truth.**_

"_**Really?" She honestly looked sad that my idea for an all-ages night at a club fell through.**_

_**How could I tell Brooke that I had taken the first step toward being unrecognizable? I couldn't. That's how. I couldn't even find real words.**_

_**I just shook my head, "Uh-uh."**_

_**Her voice had this edge of uncertainty to it as though she were feeling something deeper in my words than the surface representation of them. , "I'm sorry." Such simple words to say, and yet coming from Brooke, it was as though she were forgiving me for something she couldn't even possibly know I had done. **_

"_**Yeah, me too," I answered her. I wore my fake smile as I lied to my friend. And believe me, omission of the truth is a lie. **_

The radio was my only company as I cruised along the interstate. The day was gorgeous. Leaves everywhere were a million different colors. I wanted to smile. I wanted to turn the car around and head back to Tree Hill and hug the few friends I had. I wanted to see if Haley and Nathan's marriage worked out. I wanted to see if Lucas and Anna were going to fall in love, the way I thought Lucas and I would. I wanted to see Brooke stand up to Felix and stop the ridiculous friends with benefits behavior.

I wanted nothing more than to go on dare nights and lead cheers and watch basketball games and listen to silly music with my friends. But my life had moved past all of that. I was the only one to blame for it. I had wanted so much to not feel anything, that I pushed away everything. And now I had to leave it all behind, because the idea of facing them after what I had done, and what I had experienced. It was unthinkable.

Haley Scott's sweet face drifted into my thoughts as I listened to Lifehouse playing on the radio. The girl was nothing but pure goodness. We had grown close in the past year, and oddly she was the one I was least afraid of disappointing. Maybe it's because with Haley, there was never anything to lose. I mean, she was who she was. She wouldn't withhold love or concern. She wouldn't dangle the truth in front of anyone. She wouldn't hurt anyone.

She was the one person I had come close to telling the truth to, but I still didn't do it. It had been dare night. An idea the new kid, Felix, had set up for our little gang to play. If I had known that Haley and I were going to end up at a church. I wouldn't have played. But it was that temporary confession that really vaulted me into hell. Ironic, isn't it?

_**I sat in the confessional and got ready to play out our dare. I was supposed to confess to whatever was on the card. But as I opened it, my hands shook and I found myself about to burst with the desperation of a very lonely girl. The priest was so silent as I gripped the card and licked my dry lips. He couldn't see me, but I know if he had, he would have witnessed a lost soul, struggling for a foothold.**_

"_**Um…actually, I haven't been doing very well lately. This is…the first time I've been in a church since my mom died."**_

_**The image of her coffin draped with flowers, red roses, burned my eyes. She was the one person I couldn't bear to think about, but couldn't get off my mind, ever. I looked down at my hands and realized for the first time how thin and pale they were. **_

_**I was having trouble finding my voice as suddenly a knot formed in my throat, "I think about her every day. I just wonder what she would say to me right now if she could see me and see how I've been living."**_

_**I thought about my absent father, always on one ship or another. It was his job and it was his paycheck. It kept me fed and warm at night. And I almost laughed because it had been a very long time since my heart had felt true warmth. **_

"_**And I wonder if she knows and most days, I fall short of being the person that she wanted me to be. Or…"**_

_**I was rambling like an idiot but I didn't care. The pain was building up so heavily inside of me that if I didn't let it out, I would explode. I was surprised to hear myself speaking out loud about it all. I was even more surprised when my words were suddenly mixed with short sobs. I was crying in the presence of this stranger. **_

"_**I wonder if she saw me do that line of coke last week. And the thing is…I don't even know why I did it. You know, my life is pretty good," I double checked my laundry list of life's precious things and I knew it was true, "It is. Um…but…I was just searching for something to make it great. S-something to make it matter."**_

_**What was I saying? The approval from Rick was going to make my life matter? The only approval I needed was my own. **_

"_**So, I don't know. I guess last week when I had the chance to change that and it was, it was right there in front of me, I guess I was just scared to let that go. Um…but I know it was wrong. And I want my mom to know that and um…I want her to know that I am not that person. And I'm not going to be."**_

_**I lied to myself more than I lied to the priest or my mother. Even as the priest's calm soothing voice broke through m y lies, I tried to convince myself that I was a good girl and I wouldn't let anything control my life but me. **_

"_**I'm sure she knows."**_

_**And I cried even harder at his words, because I was sure she knew otherwise**._

"How in the hell am I supposed to know where she is," Brooke's voice was an indomitable force as Lucas asked her one more time about Peyton.

"Brooke, come on. You're her best friend. Where would she go?" Lucas looked desperate.

Brooke sat down at the table in Karen's Café and dropped her head into her hands. Haley looked up at Lucas pleading with him to calm down. The gaze seemed to affect him because he, too, sat down. Brooke finally inhaled deeply and looked to the rest of the group with tear stained eyes.

"All I know is that she left her cell phone at my house last night. She got a call and I answered it. This Rick guy…"

Nathan's brow furrowed at the name, "Rick, as in from-the-club, Rick?"

Brooke nodded, "I guess, yeah. I only met him twice and I didn't like him either time. Anyway. He called and before I could even say hello or tell him that I wasn't Peyton, he was screaming into the phone. He sounded really pissed off and he told me, or Peyton rather, that I had better run and run far, because he was going to find me."

"So you went to Peyton's house to find out what was happening?" Haley was mentally taking notes.

Brooke bit her lip and shrugged, "Yeah. I got to her house and noticed immediately that her duffel bag and her favorite jeans were gone."

"That doesn't mean anything," Lucas was reaching for hope where there was none.

Brooke shook her head, "No, it means everything. Her jeans are gone and her sketchbook and most of her CDs. Peyton's gone."

"She wouldn't just leave like that," Nathan argued.

Brooke paled slightly, "That's not all I found."

Brook looked around the café and after making sure no one was watching her she withdrew a small velvet bag from her purse. She handed it to Lucas who opened it. When he withdrew the small clear vial of white powder, he, Haley and Nathan gasped. Brooke's tears started anew and she dropped her eyes to her hands.

"I think she had reasons to leave, even without saying goodbye."

Maggie Stone stopped flipping through the channels on the satellite long enough to answer the phone. It had only been ringing, unanswered, for the majority of the morning and Maggie was finally annoyed enough to answer it.

Her voice was abrupt and rude as she said, "Yes?"

"Mags?" The voice was soft on the other end of the line. Almost a whisper. Maggie's heart broke at the sound of her once best friend.

She licked her dry lips and spoke quietly into the receiver, "Bianca?"

"Can you talk?"

Maggie sighed, "Yeah. But only for a minute. I think Jonathan will be home soon and I don't think it's a good idea if I'm talking to you when he gets here."

She could hear Bianca sigh, "How much longer, Maggie?"

Maggie felt the guilt rise in her chest. It was a constantly crushing sensation. It was how he had gotten to her. It was how he had asked her to stay away from Bianca. She feigned ignorance, "How much longer, what?"

"Why are you with him, Maggie? I know what he's doing to you. I know how he controls you. I know that…"

Maggie interrupted Bianca, not wanting to get into yet another argument about her situation with Jonathan Lavery, "Bianca when are you just going to face the facts and realize that I'm in love with Jonathan and that I'm with him only for that reason."

Maggie's tears began to fall even though her voice had not wavered. She listened to Bianca breathe on the other end of the line and she wondered how she could find the strength or will to lie to the brunette. And yet she did it on a daily basis.

"Bianca?" Maggie became nervous when Bianca didn't say anything for a few minutes.

"I'm here, Maggie."

Maggie breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Bianca's voice reached into her heart, "I mean it. I'm here. For you. When you're ready to be safe again. When you're ready to get away from him. I'm here."

"Bianca I don't know what you're talking about."

But it was too late. Bianca had hung up the phone. Maggie held onto the cordless for a few seconds before hanging it up and moving from the couch to the bathroom. She looked dolefully at her reflection and did not recognize the too-thin girl staring back at her. She glanced at her watch and knew she had fifteen minutes before her boyfriend would be home.

She picked up the concealer from the counter. It was ivory in color. Her skin had grown paler than it had ever been before and that only served to mock her by highlighting the purple and black mark in the corner of her eye. She took a deep breath and began to apply the makeup. She was dully aware of the pain of the bruise, but acutely aware of the ache in her heart.

Part 2

Brooke stood in Peyton's empty bedroom hoping the phone would ring and she would be able to hear Peyton's throaty voice on the other end of the line. She knew that wasn't going to happen so she prayed some other clue would find its way to her. But so far there had been nothing.

She looked down at the vial of cocaine in her hand. She could sense the trouble the powdery white substance had caused her best friend. She could feel the pain as though she were witnessing it directly. The questions jumbled into her mind as she tried to reconcile Peyton's sweet pale smile with the atrocity of a drug addiction. No image came.

After holding on to the vial for a few moments longer, Brooke decided to flush it down the toilet. She knew that if Peyton did come home, she didn't want her to have it. She moved from the room.

Brooke looked around at Peyton's bathroom and sighed as she took in the massive disarray of towels and clothing. She stood over the white porcelain toilet and slowly tilted the vial downward watching the destructive powder slide silently into the water. She flushed the drugs and then rinsed out the vial before throwing it into the small wastebasket.

Brooke leaned against the counter taking in every detail in the small bathroom. She allowed herself to think about Peyton and to think about their friends' reactions to the little clear vial that she had found. After a few words of speculation, Lucas had stormed out of the café and Haley and Nathan had sat in stunned silence.

It had taken all of Brooke's strength to stop her flow of tears, straighten her shoulders and walk away from the table, determined to do something about her best friend's apparent downfall. That determination had taken her from the café straight back to Peyton's bedroom.

She scanned the clothing on the bathroom floor. The entire place looked like a hurricane. It seemed as though Peyton, or perhaps someone else, had been looking for something. Brooke gazed carefully at a shirt hanging haphazardly from the hamper behind the door. Her heart skipped a beat as she recognized the shade of red that decorated the sleeve of the white cotton. She lifted the hamper lid and withdrew the shirt.

The long sleeve button up shirt smelled of cigarettes and booze. Brooke turned the garment in her hand and saw that the buttons on the front were missing, as though they had been torn away. Three small tears were blaringly obvious on both shoulders and on the back of the shirt. But it was the crimson stain on the front of the shirt and on the sleeves that caused Brooke to gasp quietly as fear renewed itself in her soul.

"Jesus Peyton. What happened to you?"

Bianca moved swiftly as she often did when she was thinking about Maggie and running on the treadmill. With each step she took toward nothing, her heart pounded in her ribcage. She thought of Maggie's wounded voice, her defeated tone. It made her angrier than she already was and she ran harder and faster, still toward nothing.

She pictured Maggie's face, slightly bruised, but covered well with makeup. Maggie had tried to deny it, but the hurt in her brown eyes was more than enough evidence for Bianca to convince Maggie to open up to her.

Maggie had not cried in her arms, nor had she admitted to Jonathan's severity. She had simply admitted that she had been hit and had deemed herself responsible for the bruise. Despite Bianca's attempt to convince Maggie otherwise, Maggie insisted that had she been more attentive to what she had been saying to Jonathan and more careful in her choice of words, she would not have sustained the bruise.

The thought that Maggie had turned into someone with that mentality was killing Bianca. Everyday she tried to call Maggie when she knew Jonathan was at Fusion. She had talked to Kendall but Kendall had dismissed Bianca's accusations as mere worry and jealousy.

Bianca had, at first, thought that Kendall might be right, but after seeing the physical evidence for herself, she knew that Maggie was in the kind of trouble that needed backup. She had finally convinced her mother, Erica Kane, that Maggie was indeed in trouble. It had been Erica's idea to wait it out. Erica knew better than anyone that when someone put himself or herself in a dangerous situation, they had to find their own way out.

Maggie had been dating Jonathan for only two months, and they had been living together for half of that time. It had appalled Bianca when Maggie fell so easily for Jonathan's so-called charms. It had upset her further when Maggie agreed to see less of her best friend in favor of appeasing her new boyfriend. Nothing had been worse than when Maggie had turned her back on Bianca when Bianca had asked for her help only two weeks earlier.

Bianca shook that memory out of her head as she brought herself back to the present. She had been running for an hour, sweat had soaked her sports bra and had drenched her hair. She grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and stepped out onto the balcony to cool off in the sweet Pennsylvania November air. She shuffled in a breath before leaning back in a chair. She took a sip of the water and watched the traffic that was moving steadily on the road beneath her penthouse apartment.

She pictured Maggie in her mind, smiling and laughing during one of their boathouse moments. Her body was heavy with the concern and grief she felt. It was as though she had lost Maggie to a fate worse than death.

"Oh, Maggie, what happened to you?"

Maggie shifted from one foot to the other as she stood by the window of her apartment watching the entrance below. She had been waiting for Jonathan for an hour. Each second that passed brought with it the possible happy thought that he had been killed in a car accident or murdered by a thug.

She saw him pull to the curb below and her heart sank. She moved away from the window and checked her appearance once more in the mirror that hung above the kitchen sink. She was certain that there wasn't an ounce of fear or disdain in her eyes. Just as she smoothed down her skirt and tucked her hair behind her ear, Jonathan bounced through the door.

His smile was huge as he laid his briefcase down by the couch, "Hey gorgeous. You'll never guess what happened to me today."

Maggie smiled warily, afraid to show too much emotion, "What?"

Jonathan sat down on the couch pulling Maggie into his lap, "Ryan promoted me. I mean, I know it's sudden, and I know it's just because I'm his brother, but apparently I've proven myself pretty well, and he thinks I deserve a challenge."

"What kind of a challenge?" Maggie was truly curious. Although Jonathan's temper scared her, his sweet side often soothed her. It was a precarious balance that made up Maggie's life.

"Well," Jonathan said as he kissed the back of Maggie's hand, "He wants to put me in charge of the corporate office in Chicago."

Maggie's heart soared momentarily as she thought about Jonathan several states away engrossed in work. She was about to thank God for that miracle, but was too quick with her praise as Jonathan stared at her intently.

"I want us to go. I want you and me to be together forever, and I think we can get an awesome start in Chicago. Away from Bianca and Jamie, and away from Ryan and everything that's ever gone wrong in Pine Valley for us."

Maggie tried not to let her sudden panic shine through her clinched teeth, "Me? You want me to move with you to Chicago?"

Jonathan smirked, "Of course I do, Maggie. I don't want to live without you."

"I like Pine Valley," Maggie spoke with out thinking.

Jonathan pushed Maggie off his lap and stood up. He began to pace the floor as Maggie took several steps away from him. Jonathan stopped and looked at Maggie menacingly, "I don't care if you do like Pine Valley. Truth is, Pine Valley won't be able to stand you after they know everything you've done."

Maggie nodded, already knowing where the conversation was going. There would be hints and threats of blackmail and bodily harm to those she loved, and then he would hit her and then she would have to go anyway. Maggie decided to skip a few steps and go ahead and acquiesce to his demand.

"I guess we're going to Chicago."

Jonathan smiled as though he were a child who had just gotten his way, "You won't regret that decision, Mags. You really won't. Everything will be different in Chicago, I promise."

Maggie forced herself to remain relaxed as he hugged her. She allowed one single tear to escape her lost brown eyes as she thought about Bianca. Maggie knew that if anyone could find a way to save her, it would be her soul mate. But she couldn't ask for the help, or it might mean losing Bianca forever.

I don't know how long I had been on the road. Hours, minutes, years. It felt like forever. I saw a sign blur by and I realized I was somewhere in Pennsylvania. I wondered only briefly how I had made it to Pennsylvania. Another sign came into view in the high beams of my headlights. "Pine Valley."

Small towns had always been my thing. I had briefly considered running to a big city and getting lost in a sea of anonymous people, but I knew I wouldn't be able to function well and get myself together if I were too lost.

The thought amused me momentarily as I realized that I was so far beyond lost that it wasn't even funny anymore. I thought about the itch I had for a certain white powder. I was glad I had left it behind in my room.

Drifting back to last night, I allowed myself to remember the last event that drove me away from Tree Hill. Rick. My dealer, my supplier, my nightmare, whatever you want to call him, showed up at my house. He was demanding more from me than he had before and I wasn't willing to give it to him. But I guess some people take things even when they aren't offered to them.

The nightmare was impossible to relive even in my thoughts so I fast-forwarded my memories to waking up at 4am this morning. I was cold and shaking. I was scared and in pain. I was bleeding and I was in deeper than I knew was possible. I didn't even think about anything as I had thrown some of my favorite things into a duffel bag and hauled ass out of town.

I knew he would come back for me eventually. I knew he would live up to his threats and if there was one thing I couldn't bare to happen it was to have my best friend, my soul friend, dragged into this hell that was my newfound life. So I had left.

And now I was pulling off the side of the road in Pine Valley, middle of no-damn-where, Pennsylvania. My car had died. I sighed and tried my best not to cry as I realized the horrible karma that was tailing me. I got out and stood on the side of the road just staring at my piece of vehicle wondering what to do next. The cold was pretty severe considering I was wearing nothing but jeans and a t-shirt. I wrapped my arms around myself and prayed for warmth. I think somehow I was hoping that it would come from the inside out.

After kicking the car for a few minutes and obtaining a very sore foot, I sat on the ground and pulled my knees to my chest. It was my best defensive position. Ball up and hide. No cars passed for at least an hour as I sat there on the side of the road letting the events of the past months sink in and bite me on my ego.

I thought about Rick again and how he became a presence in my life. It had started with that one white line of coke and had progressed from there. I remember seeing him a second time. I had just found an opening act for Karen's new club, which she was going to let me run…

_**I plugged in the sign and grinned as only the last four letters of the word, "Electric" lit up in bright neon. I studied the sign for a moment realizing how the truth and the right answer can hit you at the strangest times. There in red was the name of our new club…Club TRIC.**_

"_**Welcome to Tric," I said it out loud testing it a little. I loved it instantly. It was cool without trying to hard. It was essential and atmospheric, and yet it didn't scream out "WANNABE!"**_

_**I was happier than I had been in several days. I finally was accomplishing something. I heard the door open and footsteps coming in. I turned with my smile still plastered to my face, only to see the band manager, Rick, standing there. **_

_**He already freaked me out. And although I could say that he made me snort a line of coke, it wasn't entirely true, because I hit that line on my own. But still something about the man made me feel very uncomfortable and made me doubt myself greatly. **_

_**My smile fell as he spoke, "Nice space."**_

"_**Oh, Rick?" I was talking more to find my voice than to really address him. But he took it as his cue to talk anyway.**_

"_**I hear you're looking for bands." His face was filled with some kind of odd smug expression that made my stomach turn with nausea. I simply nodded, my entire personality faltering under his steady gaze. **_

"_**Suppose we'll be working together after all," he looked me up and down and it sent cold, angry shivers down my spine, "Guess we'll be partying together too."**_

_**I could only turn away from him as the meaning of his words caught up to me. I wanted him to leave and I wanted to make him do so, but I knew there was nothing in my will power that was going to help me do that. So turning away was my only option. Perhaps my first mistake was ever turning my back on Rick.**_

I was only vaguely aware of the sleek black Benz that pulled up next to me. I looked up from my solo huddle and saw a hottie with lacquered hair step out of the rich-mobile. He looked concerned and intrigued all at the same time. It was then that I remembered exactly what my appearance must be.

I let my hair fall in my face to cover the lengthy bruise on my temple and cheekbone. I know it was too late and that he had seen it, but there was no use in making myself more uncomfortable than I already was.

"Are you okay?" He asked me.

His voice was sweet, although it did have the hint of snobby to it that I expected it to. He wore a long black coat and I realized that it was certainly cold enough for it. His hands were clad in black leather gloves and I managed to make eye contact with him.

I shook my head, barely registering the motion myself, "Car's broken."

He pursed his lips in thought and I realized he had a beautiful face, but I wasn't interested in him, just curious. He looked at me again after giving my car a once over. I'm sure he probably thought it was a lemon compared to his nice ride.

"Would you like a lift somewhere?" My eyes must have gotten wide because he held up his hands in surrender, "I mean, are you staying around here somewhere, somewhere I can take you to. It's going to get cold here tonight and you can't stay out here alone. Maybe there's someone I can call for you?"

His face was priceless. I could tell that he was genuinely worried for me. As he asked me if there was someone he could call for me, I instantly thought about Brooke. I could call her, just to hear her voice. I could tell her I'm okay. I could…

"Hello?" He was talking to me.

"I'm sorry," I said rather feebly. "What were you saying?"

"Here's my phone." He handed me his cell phone and I finally got up from the ground, surprised I had remained there that long after this stranger's arrival. My legs were almost too tired to stand and my entire body ached with the physical and the mental pains of my life.

I accepted his phone, "It's long distance."

He smiled at me and I knew he could afford it, "Go ahead, I get unlimited nights and weekends."

Was it the weekend? Really? I stepped away from him as I dialled Brooke's cell phone number. It rang twice before she picked up.

"Hello?" God I missed her already. Something was wrong with her, I could tell. What if she needed me?

"Hello?" She asked again. I was searching for my voice. "Peyton, is that you?"

Hearing her voice filled with such anguish and fear, it unnerved me and made me feel more than guilty, "Brooke?"

"Oh god! Peyton, where are you?" She sounded almost relieved, and perhaps a little angry.

I shook my head knowing very well that she couldn't see me. I responded with a weak, "I'm not sure."

"Please Peyton, come home. I know everything."

The idea that Brooke knew everything really frightened me, and then I realized that there was no way, "You can't possibly know everything Brooke."

"Let me come to you, Peyton, please. I can't…"

Was she crying? Brooke often cried, but it was usually over money or cars or men, never about friendship, or me. "Don't cry."

I knew my voice reached her because I could hear her sniffling as though she were trying to stop the tears. I wanted to be there with her, or have her here with me. I glanced behind me and realized that the guy with the blonde hair was trying too hard to pretend like he wasn't listening.

"Brooke, I have to go. I hope you know that I…well, I…"

Brooke always knew, "I love you too Peyton, but please don't go. I need you here with me."

I hung up the phone because her heart was too much for me to handle especially when I didn't feel as though I had a heart of my own. I turned back toward the blonde stranger and put on a half-smile. I gave him the phone and tried to act as though my world weren't crumbling underneath me.

"My name's Peyton," I wondered if he thought I was crazy. I looked around at my surroundings. Lots of trees and cold air. I looked back to his outstretched hand.

He simply smiled at me, "I'm JR, welcome to Pine Valley."

Part 3

We were in the car heading toward a diner. He said he would make sure that my car was fixed and delivered to me the next morning. Meanwhile, he thought I could use some food. I knew what he was thinking. I was too thin. I admit, the way I had been living in the previous months had not permitted much energy or time for real food.

The inside of the Benz was warm and covered in tan leather. It smelled rather new and the dashboard was lit up with the latest GPS screen. I could feel my derriere warming beneath me and I realized that the car had heated seats. It was a lot like Brooke's dad's car, before they went broke of course.

My newfound friend, JR, turned on the radio and slid in a CD. He mumbled something about liking music while driving with silent strangers. I actually almost smiled at him. I was surprised to hear Switchfoot coming from the speakers. Their truest words dangling in front of my soul like a proverbial carrot.

_**Welcome to the planet  
Welcome to existence  
Everyone's here  
Everyone's here  
Everybody's watching you now  
Everybody waits for you now  
What happens next  
What happens next**_

So we sat in silence and I watched as tree after tree whizzed by. It truly was Pine Valley. We pulled into a parking lot and I hoped against hope that he wouldn't ask me any questions about the bruise on my face or the lack of life in my eyes. I wasn't ready to explain.

**_I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
Like today never happened  
Today never happened before_**

I found the song ironic and unsettling, but I continued to look out the window. I could see him from the corner of my eye, wanting to speak, but not sure if he had the right. It didn't take him long to forgo the politeness and dig into the question and answer phase of our introduction.

"So Peyton," his voice wasn't that of someone making small talk. It was more like the tone of someone trying to help me. That was the tone that often unnerved me the most, "Where are you from?"

I smiled slightly thinking about Tree Hill, "You wouldn't know it. It's a little town near the coast in North Carolina."

He smiled and I realized that he really did have a beautiful grin, "I have relatives in North Carolina. Well, distant relatives, but relatives nonetheless. You ever heard of a place called Tree Hill?"

Holy shit. I couldn't believe he had asked me that. I couldn't believe that he knew about Tree Hill and I couldn't believe that he had relatives there. I thought about everyone in Tree Hill that I knew and I realized that the only people with cars like his and the million-dollar smile like his were Brooke and her family, and maybe Nathan's mom's family. There was no way he knew them.

I faked a smile and lied. I couldn't take a chance of him calling anyone he knew in Tree Hill to find out who I was, "I think I might have heard of it before."

He nodded and turned the radio back up. I imagine he was tired of talking to a reluctant conversational partner. I listened to the music again and watched the world pass by.

_**Welcome to the fallout  
Welcome to resistance  
The tension is here  
Tension is here  
Between who you are and who you could be  
Between how it is and how it should be**_

I heard the lyrics and I wondered who I was and who I could be. Who was Peyton Sawyer? I was once a good person with a passion for art and music. That passion to be different, to do differently led me to Rick and that made me become a lost girl. I was someone unrecognizable by even my own reflection in the mirror.

My nose itched slightly and I wondered if that was the first sign of withdrawal. I really had no clue because I had never been addicted to anything in my life, much less something like a drug. And as I sat in that car listening to "Dare You to Move" I found myself paralyzed with the sudden realization that if I were to really go through a withdrawal I would be alone.

I looked at JR and I wondered if he knew where to score anything. I felt instantly ashamed for even thinking about it. He looked at me and I wondered how much gel he used in his hair. He smirked and asked me what was so funny.

"Nothing," I said as I looked out the window again, "I'm just laughing at myself because I must be a complete idiot for getting in the car with a perfect stranger."

"No more so than I am for letting a perfect stranger into my car."

He had a point.

_**Maybe redemption has stories to tell  
Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell  
Where can you run to escape from yourself?  
Where you gonna go?  
Where you gonna go?  
Salvation is here**_

The car pulled into a spot outside a nice little place to eat. When he said diner I was thinking truck stop joint. This place was actually nice. I looked at the name of the place, "BJs". I thought about how almost empty my pockets were.

We moved from the warm car into the cold air. I realized that the temperature must have dropped by at least ten degrees since my car had broken down. It was ridiculously cold and I was still wearing only a t-shirt and jeans.

I thought again about my funds, "Um…look, this is going to sound pathetic, but is this place very expensive?"

JR shook his head and didn't look at me with pity or pretentiousness, "Don't worry about it. Consider it my payment to you for a good time."

I stopped just before we got to the door as he said those words. I looked at him with fear and disdain. He blushed deeply and I found it endearing, but still his words had double meaning. I was sure of it.

He shook his head, "I didn't mean it like that. I promise."

He was fumbling over his words as I eyed him cautiously, "Then how exactly did you mean it?"

"Well," he opened the door to BJs and looked at me expectantly, "Truth is, I was supposed to be at a board meeting with my father tonight and frankly I didn't want to go. I figure helping out a potential damsel in distress is a lot more fun than hanging out with my old man."

I actually believed him. I frowned apologetically and shrugged. He nodded indicating that he was sorry for his misuse of words and I entered the restaurant. The place was only partially crowded and we found a table near the bar. It was a nice place, nothing special. It reminded me of Applebee's or O'Charley's. We sat down and I took in the faces around us.

I saw him smile and wave to a girl in a corner booth. She barely smiled back at him and I wondered if the bruise that decorated the corner of her eye came in the same way mine had. I guess she noticed me staring a little too long. She looked at me and lowered her eyes. I turned my attention back to JR.

"Who's she?" It was an innocent question, but I could see his eyes darken.

His eyebrows furrowed as though he were looking for just the right answer, "She's in love with my best friend."

"And you're in love with her?" I had had my share of wicked triangles.

He smiled, "No, nothing like that."

I glanced at the table again as a guy sat with the small blonde that JR had smiled at. The man was kind of irate looking and the look on her face spoke volumes as she kept her eyes lowered and her mouth shut. I could tell that he was verbally beating her up about something.

I looked back to JR, "Please don't tell me that's your best friend."

JR scoffed, "Hell no. That's Jonathan Lavery and if I could get away with murder, he'd be the one guy I'd pick to kill."

"Whoa, bad blood, huh?" I knew it was none of my business because after all I was a stranger, but the petite blonde intrigued me. It wasn't her necessarily, but her situation.

"You see that girl he's with?" JR looked again.

I nodded, "Yes, your friend?"

"Her name is Maggie. My best friend is Bianca. Bianca and Maggie are so meant to be together, but…well, let's just say that Jonathan Lavery happened."

I think I was a little surprised, although I covered it well, or so I thought, "Maggie…and…Bianca?"

JR looked at me with nothing but seriousness, "Do you have a problem with that?"

Did I have a problem with that? I thought about all the relationships I had experienced in my life, and all the heartbreaks I had been through and my friends had been through and as I pondered love and life and soulmates…I couldn't get the image of Brooke Davis out of my head.

"No, I don't have a problem with it," I replied honestly, "Not at all."

_**I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor  
I dare you to move  
I dare you to move  
Like today never happened  
Today never happened  
Today never happened  
Today never happened before**_

Maggie waited for Jonathan to finish his tirade about JR Chandler. She did not speak one word as he went on about those with money and those without. It was all Maggie could do to remain quiet. Some days she wanted to yell back at Jonathan and tell him that he was not a good person and that he was indeed worse than evil. But she never did.

"Did you hear what I said, Maggie?" He was looking at Maggie with intense, angered eyes.

Maggie nodded, "Of course I did. Look Jonathan, I don't know who the girl is, I swear. She looks kind of like someone off the streets or something. You know how JR is these days, all, charitable and what not. Ever since Babe left him for Jamie, JR has been changing for the better. You know it's because he started hanging out with Bian…"

She knew better than to speak her name in front of Jonathan. But it was too late. Jonathan scowled and threw daggers at Maggie with his stare. Maggie flinched and tried to silently apologize, but nothing was going to calm him down.

She took one last glance at JR and the curly-haired stranger. The blonde-headed girl was looking directly at her when Jonathan grabbed Maggie by the wrist and yanked her from the table pulling her toward the door. Maggie allowed herself to be led out of BJs without a fight, knowing that to fight was to only bring more pain. Before they were completely out of the restaurant Maggie looked back one last time to see the stranger starting to stand up and follow them.

Maggie almost wished someone would stop Jonathan, but she was more than grateful when JR put a hand on the girl's shoulder, keeping her from confronting Jonathan. Maggie knew that it would only cause more trouble. She felt herself being pulled along the sidewalk and away from the restaurant. Maggie drifted into another place and time, wishing her world would stop on a good moment, perhaps in the sunlight with Bianca, in the boathouse. Instead she lived her life through closed eyes, always fearing the next assail.

I sat back down with a pounding heart and shaking hands, "What did you stop me for?"

He shook his head and I could see the sadness in his beautiful blue eyes, "Because if you had confronted him. If you had tried to help her, things would only be worse for her when she got home."

I couldn't believe what I was hearing, "So you…you know what's happening between them, you know that he hurts her, and you do nothing?"

JR looked so lost and I suddenly felt as though I had direction. I was here for a reason. My car broke down in Pine Valley because of destiny.

"We do nothing because she won't let us help her," a voice so sweet and kind was speaking from behind me. JR looked up and smiled and I turned in my chair to see a beautiful, porcelain doll face staring back at me with sad eyes and a broken heart.

JR stood up and hugged her and I almost wanted to do the same. Her dark hair reminded me of Brooke and I realized how my heart was aching for her to be here, to help me and to help me help these people.

"I'm Bianca," she reached a slender hand out to me and I took it.

"Peyton," I replied, knowing my voice was scruffy compared to hers. She sat down just as an order of nachos came to the table. They looked incredibly warm and delicious. I looked at JR and he nodded for me to dig in. So I did.

Bianca smiled through her pain, "Wow, you're hungry."

I blushed at my behavior, "Sorry. I've been on the road all day and JR was nice enough to feed me, thought I'd take severe advantage of his kindness."

Bianca pressed her lips together in a semi-smile and tilted her head, "JR has a lot of kindness. It's hard to take advantage when it comes in such abundance."

It was JR's turn to blush, "So, how are you holding up?"

I was uncomfortable as they talked about the Maggie girl in front of me, but Bianca seemed to have nothing to hide. I listened as they went over the details of the short conversations Bianca and Maggie had had. I tried my best to imagine what kind of horrible man would keep hurting someone he supposedly loved. I thought about the girl's downcast eyes and her fearful gaze.

I was hit with a flashback so hard I nearly fell from my chair.

_**I pulled myself off the bathroom floor and looked into the mirror. The girl staring back did not have my eyes. And I knew she didn't have my soul. The blood coming from my nose and the bright red fist mark on my cheek was a painfully fresh reminder of what had taken place. **_

_**The clock on the counter told me that it was four in the morning. I looked at my cell phone and thought about calling Brooke. The way I ached inside and out made me even more painfully aware of what had happened. **_

_**I moved without thinking. I systematically shut my thoughts down and began to work on adrenaline alone. I grabbed my duffel bag from the disheveled room and threw what clean clothes I could find in it. I scrambled through the drawers and cabinets in my bathroom and grabbed what I could from there. **_

_**I let my mind wander for a brief moment as I caught another glimpse of myself in the mirror. My shirt, bloody and torn, my jeans ripped. I took off my clothes and tossed them in the hamper. I stepped into the shower and washed it all away. **_

_**When I was finally clean enough, I finished packing and I never looked back. I didn't pay any attention to the vial of coke on the floor, or the evidence of a struggle I had left behind. All that mattered was that I had to get out of Tree Hill before he came back for me or went after Brooke.**_

I sucked in a deep breath as Bianca looked at me, concern pooling in her dark brown eyes, "Hey, are you okay?"

"Um…" I was searching for something to say.

I could tell she was examining the bruise on my face and somewhere in that gaze of hers I could see that she had my situation pegged. I had to get out of there. I blinked back the few tears that threatened to surface.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I just really need to get some sleep. I'm going to try to get on the road early in the morning." I looked at JR expectantly.

He and Bianca exchanged a look and I knew that they were trying to figure me out. Perhaps if they put their collective worlds together they might someday have an idea of what I was dealing with, but at the moment I found them to be clueless.

"Yeah, I'll take you to the motel," JR said. He threw a twenty on the table and hugged Bianca goodbye.

Bianca took my hand before I could get away, "Look, whatever it is, call your family. Trust me on that."

I nodded and followed JR out of BJs and back to his car. I didn't look back because I didn't have to. I knew her saintly gaze was still peering into my not-so-saintly soul. The ride to the motel was quiet and although I tried my best to pay for the room, JR was having nothing of it.

After he escorted me to the door of the motel room and I was sure I had thanked him enough, he left and I slipped into the room and chain-locked the door. I set my duffel bag down and lay on the bed. I stared at a web of cracks in the ceiling.

I felt like I was at the center of that web. Tangled in the cracks of my lies. Lost in the depths of the darkness I had propagated upon myself. It was lonely and I wondered if there were any more lost girls at the Pine Cone Motel.

Although it was only nine o'clock at night, I was too tired to move, too tired to do anything but close my eyes and fall asleep with thoughts of my friends heavy on my mind.

Brooke walked out of the extremely busy Club Tric and shook her head. She had asked anyone with ears if they had seen Peyton or if they knew where she might have gone. No one knew anything. She inhaled the night air and looked at her watch. It was only 9pm.

The cigarette smoke came into view before the man did. He startled Brooke, but she remained calm as she immediately recognized him. She tried not to let him know that she knew who he was.

"Excuse me," she said, trying to keep the disgust out of her voice, "Have you seen my friend?"

She showed him a picture of Peyton, already knowing the truth. He sneered and threw his cigarette to the ground, "Yeah. I saw her."

"When?" Brooke was looking up at him.

His face twitched as though he were pushing down a comment about the blonde, "Could have been she was with me all night."

Brooke didn't expect his bluntness. She swallowed the burning bile that caused her stomach to wretch. The man made her sick. She knew that if he had been with Peyton at all, it was not Peyton's idea, or with her consent.

"What did you do to her?" Brooke was defiant in tone.

He smirked again, "Keep asking questions and you could be next."

He walked away and disappeared into the darkness of the shadows. Brooke exhaled slowly, realizing how afraid he made her feel. She couldn't imagine what Peyton had gone through. The tears that found their way to her face were followed by an involuntary growl of frustration and anger.

Brooke sat in her car. The sudden chill in the air was nothing compared to the deep chill in her heart. She looked at her cell phone and willed it to ring again. Her caller ID had not shown the number that Peyton had been calling from and Peyton had given no clues as to where she was. Brooke wanted to do something proactive, but had nothing to go on.

It was a miracle as the phone began to sing its ring tone to her. Brooke quickly grabbed it from the seat next to her and flipped it open.

"Hello? Peyton?" She knew her voice sounded panicked but she didn't care.

"Brooke?" His voice was vaguely familiar.

She was wary, "Who is this?"

"Okay, this is…you aren't going to believe this. I was driving along today and I came across a stranded car. A girl was sitting next to it so I helped her. She used my phone, this phone, to call someone. That someone was you."

"Oh my god, you know where Peyton is?" Brooke didn't even care to whom she was talking. She wanted to see her best friend.

He sounded almost encouraged, "You are Brooke Davis, aren't you?"

Brooke was getting annoyed, "Yes, how do you know my name?"

"It's me Brooke," he said, "It's JR. You know, your cousin. JR Chandler."

Brooke was rather stunned, "JR? How did you…"

"Like I said, I picked her up, she used my cell to call you and when I looked at the dialed calls menu I recognized the area code and knew it had to have been you she had been talking to. She's here, Brooke. I just dropped her off at a motel."

Brooke listened and wrote the motel information on her hand as JR dictated it. She knew it was already late and she knew it would be after two in the morning when she got there, but she didn't care. She had to make sure Peyton was okay.

"I'll be there tonight."

Maggie sighed quietly in the dark as she lay next to Jonathan. He had finalized the plan to move to Chicago and she had no choice but agree to go along. She turned away from his sleeping form and allowed silent tears to make their way to her pillow. Their warmth was the only thing that was keeping her soul from freezing.

She could hear him breathing deeply next to her. She knew he was asleep and she wondered if she could risk a telephone call. She glanced at the alarm clock on the nightstand. It was after midnight. She lifted herself out of the bed and snuck out of the room. She closed the bedroom door behind her as she slipped into the living room.

She pulled the cordless phone off of the receiver and crept quietly toward the bathroom. Instead of slipping into that space she moved into the closet and sat down in the dark amongst the shoes and umbrellas. She pressed the talk button and dialed Bianca's number.

Maggie felt hopeful as Bianca answered immediately. It was as though she had been expecting the call.

"Maggie?"

Maggie listened to her surroundings before talking. She was certain Jonathan wasn't awake so she whispered into the receiver, "Bianca?"

"Maggie, are you okay?"

Maggie thought about the new bruises she had sustained on her wrist and her back, "Yeah. I'm going to live. Bianca you have to listen. I don't know what to do. He's making me go with him."

"Go where, Maggie? What are you talking about?" Bianca's voice was filled with panic.

Maggie swallowed her fear and wanted so desperately to ask for help, "Chicago. He's making me go to Chicago with him."

"Maggie, we have to meet so you can tell me what's really going on. You have to tell me, or at least someone what he's got on you to make you stay with him."

Maggie knew Bianca was right, "I know. I do, but he's just so…"

Maggie stopped speaking as the closet door was yanked open. The lights from the hall and living room were blinding her but she could sense his rage without having to see him. He jerked the phone from her hands and threw it hard across the apartment. It shattered against a wall.

Maggie was on her knees looking up at Jonathan, "Please, please Jonathan, please don't hurt…"

Before she could beg him for mercy, he pulled her from the closet by the hair. Maggie could only close her eyes and beg the higher powers for safety and respite.

"_**Hey there Peyton," his voice was wicked and the drawl quickly informed Peyton that he was not on a natural high. **_

_**She had been lying on the bed, but quickly moved to a sitting position upon his arrival, "Rick."**_

_**He moved into Peyton's black-walled room and she quickly wondered how he knew where she lived. Peyton thought about how she often left the doors unlocked and she knew that it was time to change some things. He sat on the bed next to her and took a small vial of cocaine from his pocket. Peyton's mouth went dry with the sight of the drug.**_

"_**I…I don't really want to…" She tried to speak but her voice was laden with fear.**_

_**He interrupted her before she could find her strength. "Oh no. No. This is for later. I'm going to share with you, but first you need to do something just for me."**_

"_**Rick," Peyton said as she moved from the bed, "I'm not interested."**_

"_**That's not what your actions said the other times when you went on runs for me."**_

_**Peyton sighed knowing that she was in over her head, "Rick, I want out. I don't want to be your coke delivery girl any more."**_

_**He smiled that sickeningly sly grin and Peyton could feel the hate she felt for him, "Now, now…Peyton. The bands love it when you show up in those little leather pants I bought you and those skimpy little T-shirts."**_

"_**Why had I ever agreed to help him? Was it the drugs I had wanted so badly? Had I wanted to be a part of the music scene that much? Was I just so frighteningly lonely that I would dress in barely- there clothes and hang out with drugged out musicians just so I could feel like someone? It must have been all of those things." Peyton was thinking to herself as Rick moved around her room. **_

_**He looked at a picture of Peyton and Brooke and he raised his eyebrows in Peyton's direction, "She's cute. Maybe after you and I seal our little deal tonight, you could get her to come see me. I bet I could put a smile on her face bigger than that."**_

_**He had finally done the one thing that Peyton wouldn't stand for. He threatened to touch her best friend, "Don't you dare go near her. I will…"**_

"_**You'll what string bean? You'll claw me to death. Give me your best shot."**_

_**He moved between the door and Peyton. She quickly searched for another route. There was nothing but the bathroom. Peyton knew she could lock herself inside, but getting there was the hard part because he was near that path as well. **_

_**She made a move for the bathroom door and as she moved past him, he caught her by the wrist. She started fighting instantly and in the process knocked everything off her dresser. He grabbed her around the waste and she kicked her legs as hard and fast as she could, knocking more things onto the floor. He held on tight and threw her to the floor. She crawled as fast as she could toward the bathroom door. He caught Peyton by the ankles and spun her around effortlessly. **_

_**She felt like she was three times smaller than he was in weight and although she continued to fight she found it futile. He was on her, tearing at her clothes and backhanding her when she dared to call out for help. Peyton looked past Rick to the picture on her dresser. She focused on Brooke's face as the inevitable happened. **_

_**Her eyes clinched shut in pain, fear, shame. And finally a scream so loud and so filled with hurt filled the night air. **_

I sat up in bed, the nightmare still fresh. I was crying, and I wondered if I had been doing that in my sleep or if the tears had begun after I had woken up screaming. My heart was pounding throughout my body and I wondered if it was responsible for the very audible pounding I could hear throughout the motel room.

As the fog of my nightmare faded I realized that someone was trying to beat my door down. I wondered who I had annoyed or frightened with my nightmare, other than me of course. It was then that I heard the voice that accompanied the knocking.

"Peyton!" So concerned, so caring. "Damn it, Peyton, if you can hear me open the door now."

My voice could barely find the whisper, "Brooke?"

I rushed to the motel door and with trembling hands managed to undo the chain. I still couldn't speak out loud.

"Peyton? Please tell me that's you."

Brooke's voice was half-begging, half-crying. It filled my ears with exactly what I needed. Love. I finally undid the last lock and threw open the door. I was sobbing by the time Brooke threw her arms around me and shut the door behind her.

We sat on the bed together and she kept her arms wrapped around me. I temporarily forgot all of my reasons for leaving Tree Hill in the first place. I let her hold me, and I was surprised that she was so strong for me, I was surprised that she didn't ask me any questions right away. She just held me and I cried. I let her wash away the nightmare. I let her tears be my shelter.

She didn't even bother to take off her jacket as she lay back in the bed without letting me go. I allowed myself to cuddle into her and seek solace in her. It was in that position that we fell asleep.

Part 4

Bianca bounded up the stairs of the apartment building where Maggie lived with Jonathan. Her heart was pounding loudly in her ears. She was beyond glad that JR had immediately agreed to meet her there and even more happy that he was leading the way up the stairs. They burst through the door into the hallway. Maggie's apartment door seemed so far away, and Bianca felt as though she were walking through molasses to get to it. Bianca nodded to JR and while he pressed himself against the wall next to the door so he would be unseen by Jonathan, Bianca knocked loudly.

She could hear shuffling from within the apartment and a muffled voice. Her soul was tearing in two imagining the things that could have happened to Maggie. Bianca knocked again, louder and longer. Finally the wooden entrance was jerked open.

Bianca looked up into the eyes of Ryan Lavery's younger brother. She shuddered as she recognized the gaze of true evil. He was dressed in only jeans, his broad muscled chest heaved with deep breaths.

"Where's Maggie?" Bianca's voice was stronger than she thought it would be.

Jonathan sneered at her, "Who knows where the little tramp is. You should know. It's because of you she's always in the trouble she's in."

Bianca's heart sank. His words revealed to her what she already knew. Maggie was taking abuse from Jonathan in order to protect Bianca. It was what Maggie was protecting her from that Bianca didn't know. She remained firm in her tone.

"I know she's here, Jonathan. I was on the phone with her when she was…"

Jonathan scowled, "When she what, Bianca?"

Bianca swallowed the knot in her throat, scared despite the fact that JR was standing next to her, still unseen by Jonathan, "Please, just let me see her. Let me know she's okay. Please."

Jonathan shook his head and allowed Bianca to enter the apartment. He moved away from the door as Bianca looked to JR. JR came in behind her. Jonathan smirked slightly at the sight of the Chandler heir.

"Had to bring your boy toy, huh?"

Bianca pierced Jonathan with her stare, "I don't trust you Jonathan. You're evil."

Bianca began to search the apartment with her eyes, not yet moving away from the door. She saw no sign of Maggie in the living room, but the tell-tale signs of a struggle screamed at her. The cordless phone Maggie had been on was shattered into a hundred pieces on the floor. Several vases were turned over and their contents had spilled onto the floor.

As she and JR both turned their attention to the closed bedroom door, they took in the disturbing sight of a partial bloody handprint on the white frame. Bianca felt JR's hand on her shoulder. Jonathan turned and looked at the spot they were examining.

"I think you should both leave now," Jonathan said as he began to place his hands on Bianca's arm to force her to leave.

Bianca jerked away from him and moved quickly to the bedroom, "Maggie? Maggie are you in there?"

"I said you should leave," Jonathan reiterated as he made a move toward Bianca again.

JR was faster than Jonathan. He grabbed one of the overturned vases from the sofa table and brought it down hard and heavy on Jonathan's skull. The glass shattered instantly and surprisingly, Jonathan fell unconscious without any more action.

"Wow, I thought that only worked on TV," JR smirked as he checked Jonathan's pulse. It was strong and steady. He knew Jonathan would recover quickly. "We need to hurry up."

Bianca turned the knob on the door barely able to keep her eyes from the bloody print next to it. She tried not to picture how the handprint had gotten there. The knob wouldn't turn.

"It's locked," she said as she looked at JR expectantly.

JR moved Bianca aside and with a steel-toed boot he kicked the door open with one motion. The wood splintered and made Bianca jump. She quickly recovered and entered the bedroom. It was dark inside so she turned on the overhead light. The room was flooded with the bright white light of a GE bulb.

"Maggie?" Bianca's voice was fearful and whispered. She could still feel JR behind her, but her eyes would only work as they focused on the girl who lay in a huddled heap on the floor.

JR once again pushed Bianca aside, "Maggie?"

He moved to the girl's side and slowly turned her over so that her face was turned toward the ceiling. She had a small cut on her cheek, but no new bruising on her face as far as he could tell. He took in the rest of her, dressed in a silk nightgown and robe. Tears touched his eyes as he took in the larger cuts on her hands and forearms. As his eyes moved over her body, he realized that the petite woman had a knife wound just to the left of her navel. It all explained the bloody handprint.

"JR, is she…" Bianca couldn't bear to say the words as she knelt down next to Maggie. JR was now cradling her in his arms ready to pick her up and carry her out.

"No, she's alive. Her pulse is kind of weak, but she's breathing." JR pushed a strand of hair from Maggie's forehead. "We need to get her to the hospital."

Bianca nodded, her skin paling at the sight of the blood on Maggie, "It's okay Maggie. We're going to get you to the hospital. He'll never hurt you again. Never."

JR stood with Maggie. She was lifeless in his strong arms. Bianca followed JR out of the bedroom and into the living room where Jonathan was still unconscious. Bianca fought the urge to pummel him while he was helpless. She didn't want to be anything like him. Instead she led the way out of the apartment.

Once they reached JR's car Bianca climbed into the backseat and JR laid Maggie down next to the brunette. Bianca cradled Maggie's head in her lap, stroking her hair and whispering prayers. Maggie whimpered several times on the way to the hospital, but her eyes did not flutter open once.

Bianca bit back the tears and remained strong for Maggie, just trying to figure out where it all went so wrong.

Brooke watched Peyton sleep as the early morning light peeked over the horizon. The blonde haired girl was curled against her friend, as though seeking comfort, and warmth. Brooke made note of the thinness of Peyton's body. She could smell the apple-scented soap and shampoo Peyton used. She let out a breath she didn't realize she was holding.

As the sun bore through the window, Brooke could make out the bruises on Peyton's arms. The sleeves of her t-shirt did nothing to hide them. Brooke clinched her teeth together in an effort to dissolve her anger, but she knew it was not possible.

Peyton stirred on the bed, but remained asleep. Brooke didn't dare to move, knowing that if she did, Peyton would be instantly awake. She judged by the dark circles under Peyton's eyes that this was the first time her friend had slept in days. She brushed a stray curl off of Peyton's forehead and didn't bother to wipe a tear from her own cheek.

The bruise and small cut on Peyton's temple and cheek looked worse in the light of day than it had in the early morning hours as Brooke had held Peyton closely. Her well-manicured finger traced the mark gently. She soaked in the meaning of the bruises, the intensity of the situation.

Brooke thought back to the night before and the cocky sidewinder grin that Rick had flashed her. She wondered if that was the face Peyton had been seeing in her nightmare. Brooke finally swiped away her tears as Peyton's eyes began to flutter open.

"Hey," Brooke's raspy voice whispered to her as she fully opened her eyes.

The sound was like an angel calling me out of the darkness. I was almost afraid that it wasn't real. Almost afraid that she wasn't really sitting next to me, keeping me safe. It had been so long since I had felt less than abandoned.

"Hi." I answered her back, finally clearing the cobwebs from my thoughts. The reality of the morning hit me. She was here, and if she was here, then she knew.

"Peyton, I…" She was ready to talk, I wasn't. I stopped her.

"Brooke, wait. I can't…I mean, I need to…you don't know all there is to…"

I guess I was incapable of forming an intelligent sentence. She smiled her "everything's going to be just fine" smile and I melted knowing it probably would be with her here. Brooke took my hand and I didn't hesitate to lean against her. Everything I had been through dictated that I should lean on a friend, and I had no better friend than Brooke Davis.

"Peyton, I think," Brooke was gathering her thoughts and I knew from experience that when Brooke was gathering her thoughts, the result was going to be an idea I didn't like. "I think I should take you to the hospital. You know? Let a doctor check you…"

"What?" What? What was she saying? I didn't need a doctor. I needed a friend. "Brooke, I can't."

"Peyton, I know what happened to you. I was in your room. I saw the…I saw the…" Her eyes were overflowing with tears and my own eyes followed suit. What had she seen in my room?

I looked at her, perplexed in my gaze, "What, Brooke? What did you see? What do you think happened to me?"

"I saw everything that was tossed around in your room. Looked like a pretty good fight went on in there."

Maybe she didn't really know what happened. Brooke wasn't dumb. Believe me. But she wasn't always the first to solve a puzzle. Surely she hadn't put two and two together this fast. "Brooke whatever you think you know…"

"I saw your shirt, Pey. I saw your shirt. The torn one, with the blood on it. I saw it. I know what happened."

I couldn't lay down any longer. I moved from the bed, my bare feet hitting the cold carpet-covered, concrete floor. "No, Brooke. Whatever you think you know, just forget about it, please."

I thought about the trouble she could be in simply being near me. My heart began to pound wildly in my chest as I realized that because Brooke loved me enough to find me, she could possibly be in trouble too.

"Peyton, please look at me," Brooke was now standing behind me as I struggled to catch my fleeing breath.

I turned to look at her. I owed her that, and so much more, "Brooke."

My voice was a mere whisper as she nodded and reached out a hand to me. I took it and held it in my own. I wanted it to lead me into the light, to lead me into the goodness I so desperately needed to find again. But we stayed right where we stood. She stared into my soul and I couldn't look away from her. The truths in my eyes were hers to see.

"I know Peyton. I know what he did to you," Brooke's grasp on my hand was firm and caring. I swallowed hard not wanting any of it to be real. I didn't want her to talk about it, because I didn't want it to be true. And yet I couldn't stop her from saying it. I couldn't keep her from helping me. I needed her that much.

Brooke's heart was breaking as she held onto Peyton's hand. She could see the steel resolve in her friend's stance melting. Brooke inhaled deeply, ignoring the scent of the musty carpet and curtains of the Pine Cone motel. She bit her lip and tried to force a smile, but her dimples only deepened with the frown that came across her face.

"Peyton, I know that Rick…" It was so hard to say it, and yet she knew that if she didn't, Peyton never would. "I know that he attacked you."

Peyton was silent; her face displayed the expression of shock. Brooke hadn't wanted to believe she was right, but Peyton's lack of reaction, her lack of denial only proved Brooke's suspicions.

"God Pey…" Brooke opened her arms wide and Peyton moved into them. Brooke pulled Peyton close to her and tried to warm the thin girl with her love and strength. But Peyton continued to shiver against her.

Brooke pulled herself away from Peyton and brushed some curls away from her face once again tracing the bruise on the blonde's temple. Brooke sighed as Peyton flinched slightly but then sank into the touch.

"Peyton, we need to get you to a doctor. You know. For evidence and stuff."

Oh god. She wanted me to have an exam. She wanted me to go to a stranger at a hospital, put my feet in stirrups and have an exam. I couldn't do it. I wasn't some character on a Lifetime Television for Women Moment of Truth movie. I was just me. And I was scared. Even though Brooke made me feel immensely safe I couldn't stand the thought of…wait. Did she say she knew it was Rick.

"Brooke," I moved away from her and toward the window, "How did you…I mean, how did you know it was Rick?"

Brooke looked slightly nervous as I looked to her for an answer, "The cocaine I found on the floor was my first clue. Then I saw him last night outside of Tric. I was looking for anyone who might know where you were. And he basically admitted to seeing you the night before. He was…Peyton…Rick hinted that he had been with you in the 'been with you' sense of the words. And I had already been to your house. I had seen your room. I knew that whatever had happened, he…he hurt you and that you weren't a willing participant."

Her voice seemed more strained than usual. A quivering, fearful pitch replaced the raspy, sultry tone. I had never seen Brooke so afraid. But she wasn't afraid for her own safety. She was worried about me. She had seen Rick and she was worried about me. My entire being shook with the realization that just last night, Brooke had been within arms reach of the man who had…

"Brooke…please tell me he didn't follow you here," My mind was suddenly spinning.

I could tell by the look on her face that she wasn't sure, "I don't know Peyton. I don't think he did, but I was so focused on moving forward and getting here, to you, that I never even looked into my rear view mirror. Peyton, you don't think he would come here do you?"

The thought hollowed me more so than I already was. I didn't want to be this person. I didn't want to be scared and hiding and in need of comfort, but I was. I shrank away from the window and sat on the bed. Brooke knelt down in front of me, her hands on my knees.

"Peyton, you have to go to the hospital. Please. You need to…"

It was pointless, "I took a shower."

I could tell Brooke was disappointed by that fact. She knew now as well as I did that most of the evidence was probably gone.

She shook her head, "It doesn't matter sweetie. You still need to be checked out."

I glanced at the window again, almost afraid to move. But something in me knew that I could trust Brooke. Something told me that I'd be safe with her, even at the hospital. I nodded my agreement and after putting on my socks and shoes, we left the motel room and entered the beautiful but cold winter's day.

Part 5

I always hated the sounds of hospitals. Beeping and the shuffling of nurses' sneakers on cold, hard tile, it unnerved me. I looked nervously from the floor to a doctor passing by and then to Brooke, who was signing me in at the nurse's desk. We were in the waiting area of the emergency room. We had just arrived and daylight was fully peeking over the horizon now.

I was too embarrassed to look around the room, too afraid to see the faces that were seeing me. I almost sighed out loud with relief when Brooke sat down next to me in the cold plastic chairs and she slipped her hand into mine. It was the smallest gesture, and yet it meant everything to me. It gave me the strength to look around the busy medical unit.

Three chairs away from us, a man sat with his right hand clenched tightly around his left forearm. It was wrapped in a towel and I could see the blood beginning to seep through the cloth. I knew that had to hurt. A young mother held her toddler son and he was coughing uncontrollably. The various emergencies seemed so much more urgent than what I had come there for, and yet the nurse at the desk continued to glance at me as though trying to send her sympathies my way.

"Are you okay?" Brooke's voice broke through my mindless, floating thoughts.

I shrugged, "I don't know."

Her hand gripped mine tighter and I smiled at her, knowing that had she not been there, I would have already called JR, had my car delivered to me and been on the road already. But Brooke kept me grounded. I was glad that she was there. And then it hit me that I had not asked her how she knew where I had been.

"Brooke, how did you find me?"

She smiled that crooked, know-it-all smile she sometimes shared with the world, "Just so happens I have connections in Pine Valley."

"Seriously, though Brooke," I rolled my eyes at her playfully, "How'd you know?"

"My cousin happens to be the guy whose phone you borrowed last night. He called me and told me where you were."

Son of a bitch the world gets smaller by the minute, "JR is your cousin?"

She nodded and I could tell that had we not been in the serious situation we were in, she might have even gloated, "Yup. Distant cousin, but family nonetheless. He just hit the redial button and got me."

I was amazed at the way my world worked. It had to have been fate that of all the people in the state of Pennsylvania, Brooke's cousin had stopped to help me. I shook my head in astonishment and leaned against Brooke.

"I'm glad he called." It was so strange that when I wanted to be serious with Brooke, and wanted to convey my deepest heart to her, my voice always faded into a whisper.

"Me too." Brooke kissed the top of my head.

I looked again up and down the crowded hallway and for the first time I saw a familiar face other than Brooke's. I sat up straight when I saw Bianca, JR's friend, with her head in her hands and her eyes full of fear. I had a sickening feeling in my stomach that the reason she was here was the small blonde-haired girl, Maggie.

I gave Brooke a quick recap on what I knew about Bianca, and Maggie, and Maggie's boyfriend. Brooke frowned at the idea of anyone getting hit. My sweet friend hated violence with a passion and even flinched when a bad guy got what was coming his way.

"I think I'm here for a reason, Brooke," I said to her after giving her what little I knew about the people of Pine Valley.

She didn't look at me like I was crazy. She didn't even laugh. Instead she nodded, "Then we'll do what we can to help, right?"

I nodded and excused myself. I needed to make sure Bianca was okay. I made my way through the crowd and as I passed each injury and common cold, I realized how much my own body was hurting. I knew I wasn't as numb as I had been the last 36 hours.

As I approached her, she looked straight at me, and I could see the tears falling more heavily. I wasn't sure exactly what I should say, or if I should say anything, but something within me compelled me to speak to her. I glanced back at Brooke again and saw her speaking with a nurse at the admittance desk. I looked back to the sullen brunette before me.

"Bianca?"

Bianca looked up into the bright hazel eyes of the blonde JR had introduced her to the night before. She couldn't remember her name and knew that had she not been so worried about Maggie, she would have been able to recall it.

"Hi," Bianca answered, her voice drowning in her concern.

"Peyton," she answered, "JR's stray, remember."

Bianca couldn't afford a smile, but she nodded her head anyway, "Yes, I remember."

"It's Maggie, isn't it? She's here?" Peyton was direct in her question, and Bianca was thankful for it.

She nodded and offered Peyton the seat next to her. Peyton sat down without hesitation. She sat with her elbows on her knees and her hands tucked under her chin.

"How did you know it was Maggie?" Bianca asked looking into the soulful eyes staring back at her.

Peyton shrugged and lowered her eyes, "The way her boyfriend was acting at the restaurant, and the way you look right now. People only get that look in their eyes when someone they really love is hurting. And your eyes say that there's no one you love as much as you do your friend."

Peyton glanced down the hall to where Brooke was returning to her seat. The look was noticed by Bianca, "Yeah, I guess maybe you know something about that?" 

Peyton looked slightly bashful as she realized what Bianca was suggesting. She simply shrugged again and looked toward the heavy double metal doors that led back to the operating and exam rooms. An image of the petite blonde from the night before flashed into her mind.

"How bad is she?" Peyton asked, not really sure she wanted to know.

Bianca frowned deeply, "Very bad. He…"

Bianca inhaled sharply indicating to Peyton how serious the situation was. It was a few seconds before Bianca could speak through her fresh tears.

"He stabbed her, apparently."

Peyton paled, "Oh god. Is she?"

"I don't know," Bianca answered truthfully, "I have no idea how she is. No one will tell me anything. JR's here somewhere filling out paperwork. But she went back there several hours ago and they won't tell us anything."

"What about her boyfriend?" Peyton seemed a bit concerned about the whereabouts of Maggie's abuser.

Bianca bit her lip, "I don't know that either. We talked to the police when we got here and after they took our statement they left to find him. At least I think that's where they were going."

"It's going to be okay," Peyton looked sure of her words and that calmed Bianca slightly.

"Thank you," Bianca said. She looked down the hall to where Peyton's friend was sitting. The brunette was smiling sympathetically in her direction. Bianca nodded her head to the stranger.

"Your friend is very beautiful," Bianca was just trying to make conversation.

"And she has no idea how beautiful she is," Peyton said, a slight blush touching her pale cheeks.

Bianca smiled warmly, suddenly thankful for the distraction from her fears about Maggie's condition, "So what brings you two to the emergency room?"

Peyton's reassuring expression fell quickly. Bianca quickly tried to recover the moment, "I'm sorry, that was rude of me to ask. I mean it's none of my business. I shouldn't have…"

"It's okay," Peyton replied, "I just…I need to see a…"

"Peyton Sawyer," A female voice rang out through the hallway. Peyton looked up to see a dark-haired woman standing with a clipboard in her hand.

Peyton looked back to Bianca, "I'm sorry, I have to…"

"It's okay, Peyton. Thank you for keeping me company," Bianca reassured her.

I hated to leave her sitting there alone and I wondered how long she would have to wait for any news about Maggie. I rejoined Brooke and together we turned toward the brunette.

"Are you Peyton Sawyer?" She looked at me. I nodded, feeling very shy suddenly. I felt Brooke's hand on my lower back and I knew she would catch me if fell.

I nodded and she smiled sweetly as she moved through the doors and motioned for us to follow her, "My name is Anita, I'm a physician's assistant. I'm going to be by your side through everything."

As we stopped outside a curtained exam room, I looked warily at Brooke, and a fear hit me that I might have to go through this without her. But Anita's voice brought me quick reassurance that I wouldn't have to.

"Don't worry. Your friend can stay with you through almost everything. There'll be some blood tests we'll need to do after the exam and the lab doesn't allow anyone but patients and doctors in there. They had a problem or two with people switching test results. Have you ever heard of anything so strange? Anyway, she'll have to return to the waiting area then."

She talked directly to me, and although I knew that she was very well aware of why I was here, she showed no signs of pity, only deep care and concern. I liked her. I liked the way she treated me like an adult. She pulled out a paper gown and directed me to put it on. She left the room saying she would get the doctor and would return within fifteen minutes.

I turned to Brooke as the nervousness overwhelmed me. I could see in her eyes that she wasn't about to let me turn back now, and although I wanted to yell at her for it, I also loved her even more for taking care of me, and for making me want to take care of myself.

"Do you want me to leave while you change?" Brooke asked.

I was suddenly self-conscious of two things. One was that I was about to be without clothes and Brooke and the doctor would both be witness to this and the other was that I was terrified that if Brooke left my sight I might never see her again.

I grabbed her hand as she motioned toward the curtain, "No. Please don't leave me."

Brooke nodded and sat in a blue-green leather chair that sat next to the examining table. I turned my back to her so that I could remove my shirt. I knew she could see me trembling, and I wondered what she was thinking of me.

Maggie slowly opened her eyes and focused on the bright light above her. She could hear people talking around her and immediately recognized the medical jargon of her pre-med days. She knew then that she had finally ended up in the hospital at the hands of Jonathan Lavery.

She silently thanked the Heavens above that she was alive and then tried to focus more on those around her. She recognized Dr. Joe Martin's voice and turned her head to find his face. He was staring back at her, wearing a proud smile.

"Maggie?" His voice was comforting to Maggie. Something familiar and grandfatherly in its presence.

Maggie's throat hurt, "Am I alive?"

He chuckled slightly, "Barely. But you'll make it just fine kiddo."

Maggie nodded and tried to take inventory of any pains of bumps, bruises, or broken bones. She could feel nothing. "I can't feel anything."

"It's okay, Maggie. We gave you a muscle-relaxer during surgery."

Maggie heard him perfectly clear, "Surgery?"

Her vision began to blur and she knew that whatever sedative they had given her was taking effect. She could hear Dr. Joe explaining to her that it would wear off soon enough and then she could see Bianca.

"Bianca," Maggie whispered.

"That's right," Dr. Joe said as he patted her arm, "Bianca's waiting outside for you. She can come in as soon as you wake up."

Maggie partly slept and partly listened to the world around her. She felt the bed being rolled away from its current location and she allowed the motion to lull her into darkness as she tried to recall how she had finally ended up in the ER.

Brooke suppressed the gasp that fought to escape from her mouth. She covered her lips with her hand to further the suppression. She was staring at Peyton's bare back and was shocked and appalled to see the bruises along the blonde's shoulder blades and sides. Brooke couldn't fight the tears as easily as she hid her intake of breath.

Peyton's body had trembled thoroughly as she had taken her shirt and bra off. Brook saw scratch marks on Peyton's lower back. They were the signs that were indicative of being attacked. She almost didn't hear Peyton speaking to her because she was in such agony over her friend's torture.

"Brooke, can you help me?"

Brooke looked up to see that Peyton was holding the paper gown in her hands, obviously frustrated. Brooke laid her jacket down in the chair and stood to help Peyton. Her hand gently grazed the bruises that decorated the fair skin of Peyton's back. Peyton didn't flinch, but her shoulders sagged. Brooke helped Peyton slip on the gown and then tied it for her.

Peyton tried to smile her thanks, but the enormity of her situation was finally reaching into her soul and bringing her into reality. Brooke cupped Peyton's cheek in her hand and nodded her reassurance. Peyton swallowed hard. Brooke returned to her seat as Peyton removed the rest of her clothes.

Brooke took in the sight of the bruising along Peyton's thighs. She inhaled deeply and helped Peyton sit on the table. She was trying not to treat her best friend like fragile glass, but knew in her heart that was exactly what Peyton was. Breakable, fragile.

Bianca looked up and felt anxiety and relief wash over her at the same time as Dr. Martin came through the double doors. She could feel JR's hand in hers and was glad he had returned from handling Maggie's case with the hospital. They both rushed to Dr. Martin as he motioned for them.

"Dr. Martin how is she?" The words rushed from Bianca's mouth.

Dr. Martin placed a reassuring hand on Bianca's shoulder, "She's going to be fine. We had to do some surgery on her. The knife nicked an artery and it caused a lot of bleeding, but we were able to correct the situation. She's not completely in the clear yet. We need to make sure there are no signs of infection and we need to make sure that all bleeding has ceased before we'll release her."

"Can we see her," JR asked.

Dr. Joe smiled, "Soon enough. She's in recovery and she's still pretty out of it. But once she wakes up, we'll send someone in here to get you. I promise you."

Bianca thanked Joe and as he left, she and JR returned to the hard plastic chairs amidst the crowded waiting area.

Bianca shook her head and sighed. "I can't believe he did this to her."

"What's not to believe," JR asked, his jaw clenched tightly in anger.

Bianca nodded, "I know, he's evil, but JR. She could have…"

JR quickly grabbed her hand, "Don't even say it Binx. Maggie's a fighter."

"Yeah? If she's such a fighter then why was she still with him?"

Breakable, fragile. That's probably how Brooke saw me. Like I was a hand-blown glass figurine that would crumble under the slightest touch. Her hand was on my knee, my bruised leg. She was comforting me the best way she could under the circumstances and it worked only slightly.

I heard Anita ask if we were ready and Brooke answered for me since I was having a problem finding my voice. Anita entered followed by a female doctor. For that much I was thankful. They looked a lot alike, Anita and this doctor.

"Are you two related?" Brooke asked the question, once again voicing my thoughts.

The doctor smiled and I realized she and Anita had the same sweetness, "We're sisters, yes. Hi. I'm Dr. Maria Grey."

I nodded and found it almost impossible to look up from the tiled floor. The curtained room began to feel very uncomfortable. I could still feel Brooke standing next to me, her hand on my leg. I wanted to grab her hand and run for the exit, but instead I stayed right where I was. Cocaine crossed my mind and I knew that the experience would have been more bearable if I were high.

"Okay, Peyton. Why don't you tell me what happened?" Dr. Grey sat before me, non-threatening, very concerned, and I wanted nothing more than to tell her everything and be done with it. So that's what I did. She turned on a tape recorder and I started with the cocaine that I had taken. Then I told her all about Rick. And the whole time I was describing exactly what he did to me, I could feel Brooke's hand in mine, keeping me safe and calm.

When I finished describing every last detail, I waited for them to walk out on me, for them to laugh at me. I waited for them to tell me it was all my fault, but they did none of those things. Instead, they stood strong before me, and looked at me not in pity, but in sympathy, and I could handle that.

"Thank you, Peyton, for being honest about everything. Including the drugs. That will help us in taking care of you." Maria looked as though she meant it. "This next part, the exam, it isn't something anyone is ever prepared for. I want you to know that if at any time during the procedure you need me to stop, just say the word and I will."

I nodded and let Brooke and Anita guide me down onto the table. Everything was becoming blurry and I didn't immediately realize that it was my tears that were clouding my vision. I looked up at Brooke and she stood there with me, her face filled with care and love. That sweet face was my guardian throughout the entire exam.

Not once did I take my eyes from Brooke's. Even during the difficult parts, the parts that were painful in more ways than one, I remained focused on her face, as I had when it had happened. I wondered then and there, as she cried with me, how could I ever have been so lucky to end up with my own angel. And I wondered if God would ever be so cruel as to take her away from me.

I really hoped not.

Part 6

I searched out Brooke's eyes before a nurse led her away from the exam room. She seemed so hesitant to leave me and I wanted nothing more than for her and I to leave the emergency room, get into a car, preferably one that worked, and disappear into some mystical sunset somewhere. But alas it was only eleven in the morning, my stomach was growling with hunger, and I was following Anita to the lab area for tests.

The ER was still bustling with the injured and ailing. But as I moved behind Anita it was as though the crowded area was non-existent. My mind was filled with the suddenly acute awareness of what had happened two short nights before. And oddly, as much as I should have been freaking out, I was extremely calm. I knew Brooke was the reason for that.

I sat in the cold plastic lab chair. Anita smiled and her gentle demeanor helped to ease my nerves about the needle and vials that occupied her hands. I watched as the sharp pinpoint of the syringe entered my skin. It neither hurt nor felt good. It was rather numb actually.

I could hear music playing over the hospital speaker system. So depressing and yet so incredibly accurate was the song that was reverberating throughout the rooms of the ER that I almost smiled at the appropriateness.

_I wanted you to know I love the way you laugh  
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain away  
_

I thought of Brooke. She was the only person I could see in my mind when I closed my eyes, and I was thankful that the image was of her, and not Rick. As Anita filled the last vial with my blood, I tried not to think about how much my actions had hurt Brooke. But it was hard not to know. It was hard to pretend that what had happened to me two nights before did not directly affect my best friend.

_I keep your photograph; I know it serves me well  
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain_

Anita placed a band-aid over the small ball of gauze that kept me from bleeding. She half frowned when she tried to smile and I wondered if she was trying to read my mind and was succeeding. She knelt down in front of me and it was then that I realized that fresh warm tears had found their way to my cheeks. When did I start crying again?

"Peyton," Anita's voice was soft, delicate, "What happened to you, it's unforgivable. I know I don't know anything about what you'll be going through in the days to come, but if you need anyone to talk to…"

"Brooke," my voice sounded foreign to me, "I have Brooke."

Anita nodded and I could tell she knew how much Brooke meant to me. I could also see what Anita was getting at. Brooke might need a break. She might need time away…from me. Brooke might not be able to handle my burdens alone.

Rick had been out of bed for less than an hour, but already his day had been beyond exciting. His boss had woken him up with the sharp tone of an unhappy man. But the news had been good. Very good for Rick.

"Baker?!" The man snapped loudly as Rick answered the cordless phone.

Rick slowly sat up in bed, and scratched his bare chest. "What can I do for you?"

"I heard that our rather promising up and comer took leave without notice?"

Rick frowned as he thought of Peyton Sawyer, "You heard right."

"What are you doing about it?"

Rick raised an eyebrow, thankful that his boss couldn't see the look of exasperation on his face, "Well, I'm…"

Rick stopped himself from stuttering and instead become quickly creative, "Well, I'm hunting her down, sir."

"That's good Baker, because from everything I heard, she could be a really good asset to our little franchise."

Rick shuffled in a deep breath, knowing exactly which business the man was referring to. He couldn't imagine Peyton willingly going along with it. The thought made him smirk.

"She's a real tiger cat, that Peyton," Rick informed the man on the other end of the line.

"Then you've sampled the product," he seemed amused.

Rick pictured Peyton in his mind and recalled the time he had spent with her 36 hours earlier. He ran his hand over his chest and felt the scratch marks embedded into the muscles there, "Oh, yes sir, I have."

"And she's worth my time and effort?"

"Yes sir," Rick answered.

"Then find her Baker. Find her and bring her into the business, willing or not. You got it?"

"Sir, I'll need…"

The man chuckled slightly, "Consider it done Baker. Check your mailbox for an envelope of expense funds. There'll be triple that if you get her back to Tree Hill."

Rick smiled, promised to call the next day, and then hung up the phone. He stumbled out of the bed and moved to the bathroom. He took a long look in the mirror and admired the marks on his chest. To him they were trophy marks. He knew he hadn't been Peyton's first, but it didn't matter. He knew in his twisted mind that he had been the best.

She shivered as the song played throughout the still busy waiting room. She pushed a slender hand through her dark hair and thought once again about Maggie. Bianca had not moved since talking to Dr. Martin. JR left her sitting there as he swore under his breath about Jonathan and disappeared.

Bianca had thought about stopping him, but somewhere in her heart, she almost prayed that JR would kill him if he found him. She stared at the double doors leading back to the exam rooms and OR's. No movement was to be seen. To occupy her time she thought of the good times she had spent with Maggie.

There had been so many that she couldn't keep track of them all. And the bad times were bad, but with Maggie always by her side, they had been bearable, sometimes even easy. Maggie made everything seem possible.

Bianca thought about how distant Maggie had become when she had started dating Jonathan. She remembered that the more intense Maggie's relationship grew with the younger Lavery, the more un-Maggie like she seemed.

And then she saw the first bruise. It was just a slight mark on the cheek. And then there was one on her wrist. Before too long Maggie tried to avoid her all together. Bianca refused to let Maggie slip into the abyss that was Jonathan Lavery. And yet she was sitting in the ER waiting to see her abused, broken friend.

_'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome  
And I don't feel right when you're gone away_

Bianca looked up as the double doors swung open. She was disappointed to see Peyton's friend come through the door instead of Dr. Joe, but at the same time she was intrigued by the look of loss in the girl's eyes. It suddenly occurred to Bianca that she and this girl had something in common.

JR looked around the hallway of Maggie's apartment building. The police had already collected their evidence from within but their yellow tape still decorated the door. Once he was sure no one was around, JR slipped the tape from the door and entered.

Everything was the same, and yet seemed so much more real in the early hours of the afternoon. The bloody handprint on the frame of the door seemed so much smaller than it had the night before. He let his hand hover over the print and shook his head as he realized how small Maggie's hands were.

He glanced into the bedroom afraid of flashing back to earlier that morning when he had lifted Maggie's lifeless body from the floor. He was afraid of seeing her once again pale and bleeding. He was even more afraid to remember the look in Bianca's eyes. He had never seen so much love and loss in one person before.

JR stepped out of the bedroom and into the kitchen. By the phone was a notepad with a pencil. The top sheet of the pad was blank. JR picked up the pencil and ran the graphite over the blank sheet. The indentations of the previous note soon appeared under the shading.

JR set his jaw as he realized what Jonathan knew and what had been written on the notepad. He pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and quickly dialed a number. A gruff, authoritative voice picked up the other end before the first ring could end.

"Dad?" JR asked, "I need your help."

Brooke moved into the waiting area. She glanced quickly into the hall behind her, hoping to see Peyton catching up and coming out with her. She felt sadness weigh her down as she realized that there was no blonde behind her.

She moved into the waiting room and saw Bianca sitting there staring back at her. Brooke tried her best to smile charmingly at the girl, but she had nothing to offer. The girl sat up straight and motioned for Brooke to sit next to her.

Brooke felt relieved and thankful that someone was inviting her in. She thought about Peyton sitting in the lab having blood drawn. She wanted to hold her hand and to keep telling her everything was going to be okay. Instead she took the seat next to Bianca, intrigued by her, comforted by her politeness.

"Hi," Brooke spoke softly, her throaty voice made soft by the fears that ran through her, "I'm Brooke."

The brunette nodded to her, "You're Peyton's friend, right?"

Brooke nodded, "And you're Bianca right?"

Bianca nodded. Brooke looked to the floor, overwhelmed by the intensity of Bianca's brown eyes, "Peyton told me what happened to your friend Maggie. Is she going to be okay?"

Bianca sighed, "Dr. Martin seems to think she'll be just fine. She's in recovery now, but it'll be a little while longer before I can see her."

Brooke frowned as she realized that Bianca's eyes had turned toward her again, "What happened to Peyton?"

She bit her lip, wondering if she should tell this stranger the intimate hell that Peyton had been through, "I can't…I mean, it's not my place to say."

"I understand," Bianca said. Brooke could tell by the tone of her voice that she truly did get it.

"Have you ever had a friend that was…I mean, do you know anyone close to you that's been…that was attacked?" Brooke couldn't believe she had such a hard time saying the word, but it still wouldn't come to her.

Bianca bowed her head and Brooke could tell she was debating whether or not to share a secret with her. It was then that Brooke noticed the darkness that suddenly clouded Bianca's eyes, even more so than moments earlier.

"You? It happened to you?" Brooke couldn't believe she was being as forward as she was, "I'm sorry. You don't have to answer…"

"No, no it's okay. It's just that I'm used to everyone already knowing. It was big news here."

Brooke blushed with embarrassment as she realized how careless her words could be, "I'm sorry Bianca, I didn't know. I was just asking because of…"

"Peyton?"

Brooke nodded slightly and inhaled deeply trying to fight back the tears of anger, "Apparently it was pretty bad, not that it's ever not bad…I mean, no one…"

"It's okay, Brooke. Just breathe."

Brooke nodded and inhaled, "Yeah, thanks."

"It's hard being a victim and it's hard being the sole support for the victim. Ask Maggie…"

Brooke could tell that Bianca was trying to be strong in her effort to not actively worry about Maggie. Brooke wanted to know all about the two women, past and present. She knew somehow their friendship, their bond, was the answer to the questions she asked herself about how she would help Peyton.

Jonathan's remorse far out shadowed his anger as he quietly crept through the corridors of the hospital. The call that had awoken him from his knocked-over-the-head –with-a-vase slumber had been an early-morning call for Maggie. Jonathan had answered and let the caller know he was Maggie's fiancé. The caller had given Jonathan all the fuel and information he needed to keep Maggie by his side.

The call had led him to PVH where he now slipped unseen into the file room. Jonathan smiled at his luck as he thumbed through Maggie's file coming upon a quarry of test results and procedures. A gentle man would have saddened at the news within. A decent soul would have looked to the sky and called on the angels. But Jonathan Lavery planned to use the information contained within the manila envelope to further his hold on Maggie and to turn Bianca Montgomery against the small blonde haired girl.

Maggie's eyes fluttered open. She was grateful for the bright vision-blurring lights shining down upon her. She inhaled deeply and coughed slightly as the stitches in her stomach pulled tight. She winced with the slice of agony but it soon eased as she focused on her surroundings. She was in a private room and in her own private hell.

The memories of the early morning hours flooded her mind and made her flinch in fear. She had never seen anyone as angry as Jonathan had been. No movie, television show, or description in a book could do justice to the horror of that single evil expression.

Maggie gazed down to her arms and saw the many bandages. Her hands were wrapped in gauze. She recalled the pain of each cut of the knife as she had covered herself in defense. The wounds wouldn't scar for they weren't deep enough. She knew that much from her pre-med classes.

She wiped away a tear with the back of her hand as she recalled his hand wrapped strongly around the knife as she struggled against him to gain control of the weapon. There was nothing she could have done to stop him from stabbing her, and she knew that, but still somewhere inside of her, a voice screamed to her that she should have fought sooner. Maggie closed her eyes. Her hand floated to her bruised cheek.

_You've gone away  
You don't feel me here, anymore_

She thought of Bianca and wondered if Bianca had rescued her. She wondered who had carried her from the apartment. She wondered if Jonathan was behind bars. Maggie felt tired. So many months of fighting…of simply surviving. It exhausted her.

She was about to fall asleep when she heard a soft knock on the doorframe of her private room. She looked up to see a vaguely familiar face, like an angel, framed by bright blonde curls, and marked by eyes of loss and sadness.

Bianca glanced at the double doors, hoping Dr. Joe would make an appearance. Knowing it would be a little while longer; she looked back to Brooke, who was also searching the double doors. Their conversation had lulled into an uncomfortable silence, as each worried about her best friend.

Bianca was tired of the silence, "Where are you and Peyton staying?"

Brooke chuckled, "Some skeezy place, the Pine Cone Motel."

"Yeah…I know it," Bianca said laughing slightly at the image of the run-down accommodations. "Do you know how much longer you'll be in Pine Valley?"

"Well," Brooke shrugged, "Not really. I mean we can't go home right now. It's too…" 

Brooke swallowed the word 'dangerous' before it could escape her mouth. As nice as Bianca was, Brooke knew that she couldn't tell her about Rick. The bitter taste of hate soaked her tongue as she thought about the man who had hurt Peyton.

"Well, we just can't go back," Brooke finished.

Bianca's face relayed the curiosity and concern she suddenly felt. She looked at the newcomer and frowned, "Well, you can't stay at the Pine Cone Motel, that's for sure. There are way too many unsavory people there."

"Well, I guess I could ask my cousin, JR if we could stay with him."

Bianca smiled, "JR? JR Chandler? He's your cousin?"

Brooke nodded, "Yeah. He's the one that told me where I could find Peyton."

"Yeah, he picked her up after her car broke down. Actually he mentioned something about Peyton's car being ready today."

Brooke shrugged, "It doesn't matter, we've got my car."

Bianca looked as though she were thinking hard about something. Before Brooke could ask her if she was okay, Bianca nodded and stared directly into Brooke's hazel eyes.

"You'll stay with us."

Brooke blinked twice before the words really sunk in, "We'll stay with you?"

Bianca nodded, "Yes, I have a two bedroom apartment, and a fold-out sofa. I have more than enough space."

Brooke smiled crookedly at Bianca's sudden enthusiasm, "I'll have to talk to Peyton. I don't know what she'll want to do after this. She might want to move on to somewhere else."

"Well," Bianca's smile grew, "You think about it and talk it over with Peyton. But the truth is, I have very selfish reasons for asking."

Brooke was intrigued, "What selfish reasons?"

"Well, I'm going to be taking Maggie home with me whenever they release her from the hospital. I won't be able to be with her all the time and I would feel so much safer knowing that someone who won't hurt her will be there."

Brooke's heart felt warm as she realized that Bianca was telling the truth and that her gesture of kindness was really an act of protection for Maggie. Brooke would have done the same thing for Peyton.

"Tell you what. We'll stay with you for as long as Peyton wants to stay in Pine Valley. But Bianca, there's…you have to know that Maggie's not the only one with someone dangerous in her life. Peyton's…"

Bianca held up her hand, "Then see, it'll work best for all of us, because now they'll both be protected all of the time."

Brooke smiled and for reason's unknown to her she reached out and hugged Bianca tightly. Brooke had come to the solid conclusion that although Pine Valley was very different from Tree Hill, the people were still just as big-hearted.

I watched her from the door for a few seconds before I knocked. She looked as though she was about to drift into a restless sleep and I wanted to talk to her before she did. I wasn't sure why I felt compelled to speak to her. She looked at me like she was trying to figure me out.

Her expression fell somewhere between grief and perplexity. When she didn't immediately motion for me to come into her room, I went in anyway. She was wide-awake now and I had her attention. I sat down in the chair next to her bed. I found myself shaking from the inside out. I was nervous around this girl. Hell, who am I kidding, I had been nervous around everyone for weeks.

She looked at me curiously and I knew I had to speak first, "Hi. I'm Peyton. I don't know if you remember seeing me yesterday at…"

"You were with JR."

It was a simple sentence. The fact that she remembered me, however, impacted me greatly. I smiled as much as I could considering the exam I had just been through. It also didn't help that this very small woman in the hospital bed before me had only hours ago been on the brink of death. Maggie was my mission.

I nodded, "Yeah, he picked me up when my car broke down."

"He's very kind that way," Maggie said, avoiding eye contact with me completely.

I nodded again, not sure what to say. I was in her room for a reason. It was something that would help everything make sense to me, and yet I couldn't put my finger on it.

"How do you feel?"

Okay, so it was the dumbest question I could have possibly asked. She actually looked at me and smiled, as the expression on my face conveyed my knowledge of my own stupidity.

"It's okay. I mean, the drugs are starting to wear off, and things are starting to hurt a little, but it's nothing compared to…"

She quit speaking as she realized that she was talking to a complete stranger. She didn't have to finish her thoughts for me to know what she was going to say. I can't even begin to imagine what gave me the nerve to place my own shaking hand on her arm where there were no bandages.

She looked thoughtfully at my hand and then up at me as I stood up, "What's your name?"

"Peyton. Peyton Sawyer," I answered.

She nodded, "Why are you here?"

Why was I there? Great question.

"Well, I was walking down the hall trying to find my way out of this place and then I saw you. I mean, I talked to Bianca in the waiting room, and then I saw you and I felt like I should…well, I felt like I should come in. I needed to…"

Maggie shook her head, "Needed to what?"

I shuffled my feet and withdrew my hand from her arm. I stuck my hands in the pockets of my jeans. I knew I looked like some scared teenager unsure of everything, and frankly that's what I was. Somehow this girl, who was either my age or within a few years of my age, intimidated the hell out of me.

I turned to leave but she called out to me, "Peyton, wait. I wanted to say thank you."

Thank me? I turned back toward her. Her big brown eyes, reddened from tears shed and bloodshot from the hell she had been through, were burning into me. She was obviously very smart and highly perceptive. It made me wonder how her boyfriend had ever gotten the chance to abuse her.

"You want to thank me?" I tried not to sound as astounded as I felt.

She nodded, looking sleepy suddenly, "I saw you at BJs and when Jonathan dragged me out of there, you wanted to follow. I saw that."

I blushed slightly and shrugged, "Yeah, well, I was kind of worried."

"Why?" She asked me, "You don't even know me."

"I don't know. It was his eyes. A couple of nights ago, I saw the same…" I stopped myself and shrugged again, a gesture that becoming redundant for me in Pine Valley, "Let's just say that I know enough to know when something's not right."

_The worst is over now and we can breathe again  
I wanna hold you high, you steal my pain away  
Theres's so much left to learn, and no one left to fight  
I wanna hold you high and steal your pain_

Maggie looked at Peyton and knew without doubt that she really did know enough. Maggie could see the bruise marks just under the short sleeve shirt the curly-haired girl was wearing. She could see the innocence in Peyton's face and knew she was still in high school.

It bothered Maggie that someone so young would have the ability to know such darkness. She wondered momentarily how Peyton had become equipped with such knowledge.

_'Cause I'm broken when I'm open  
And I don't feel like I am strong enough_

Maggie felt her heart sink as everything that had happened in the months before collapsed upon her mind. She looked at Peyton with tears in her eyes and could see the same teary-eyed expression mirrored on Peyton's face.

"I'm sorry," Maggie said softly, "Do you think you could find Bianca for me, tell her what room I'm in. I need to see her."

Peyton didn't hesitate to move. Maggie tensed under the hospital sheets as she recalled the lies she had told Bianca. It had all been to protect her best friend, but the time had come that the lies stopped and the truth began. Maggie knew she had to tell her everything before it was too late and Bianca was gone.

_  
'Cause I'm broken when I'm lonesome  
And I don't feel right when you're gone away_

I walked slowly back to the waiting room, allowing my strange conversation with Maggie to settle into my brain. When I went through the double doors I wasn't surprised to see Brooke and Bianca talking to one another. I was glad that Brooke had introduced herself.

I felt a soaring rush of emotions when Brooke turned to me and rushed to hug me. I hugged her back like there was no tomorrow. And I knew that had it not been for Brooke Davis, there might not have been a tomorrow, at least in my world.

Bianca smiled slightly and I could see the slight hint of envy in her eyes. I could see how badly she needed to be with Maggie at that moment, so I turned to her and told her that Maggie was awake and asking for her. Bianca thanked me, gave Brooke a key, and then rushed off through those damn double doors.

Brooke smiled gently at my confused expression, "I'll explain everything in the car."

Bianca entered Maggie's room and was instantly shocked and sorrowed by the pain and exhaustion she could see in her friend's face. She quietly went to her bedside and slipped her hand into Maggie's. Maggie's eyes fluttered open with the contact.

"Bianca," the petite blonde whispered, "I was wondering when I would see you."

Bianca shushed Maggie, as she brushed some of the blonde's hair off of her forehead, "Don't say a word, not yet. We can talk later. For now, just know that I'm here, and that you're safe, and that I love you, so very much."

Maggie soaked in the sight of Bianca before her eyes drowsily closed sending her into a dark abyss of memories intertwined with nightmares.

Jonathan stood outside the door watching Bianca as she laid her head on the side of Maggie's bed. He could tell that his girlfriend was asleep. The idea of Bianca and Maggie in the same space angered Jonathan beyond reality but he put away his temper long enough to know that he couldn't be caught in the halls of the hospital.

He took one last glance at Maggie and left the area. He walked outside the hospital, proud that he had not yet been caught by the police. He knew he couldn't return to the apartment so instead he decided to check into the Pine Cone Motel for a night or two.

As he sat in his car, he thought about Maggie and how in his mind she had betrayed him. He thought about his brother and he briefly wondered if there was anyway to get back into Ryan's good graces once he found out what he had done.

It didn't matter any longer. Not to Jonathan. His mind was wrapped around only one name, one face, one destiny. Maggie was gone from his life for the time being, but soon enough, he would have her to himself once again. He smiled a crooked smile as he pulled away from the hospital parking lot. He felt his back pocket for the papers he had copied from the file room at the hospital. Everything he needed to know was right there. Including Maggie's fate.

_You've gone away  
You don't feel me here, anymore_

Part 7

I must have been caught somewhere between the "huh" and "what" that were rolling across my tongue. I set down the styrofoam cup of coffee that I had been sipping from. I felt like I had been absent from the halls of the hospital for a year and instead on a wild space ride, but in fact I was merely taking in the idea that Brooke had just presented to me.

"You think this is a good idea?" I asked her, my head filling with the different scenarios that could play if we temporarily moved in with Bianca and Maggie.

She down on the motel bed with a bounce. I glanced past her to the darkness that had fallen outside, and then quickly back into her eyes.

Brooke smiled her fabulous smile, "Would I have mentioned it if I didn't think it was a great idea? Think about it Peyton. You yourself said you have a purpose here. You have something to accomplish. This has to be fate stepping in."

I guess fate be a lady with an apartment key. The displaced thought wandered through my already foggy mind. But Brooke wasn't exactly wrong. I had decided that Maggie was my mission. What better way to help her than to be close to her.

Brooke must have seen the spark in my eyes, because her smile faded quickly and was replaced with concerned, "Peyton, before you get all gungho and angelic trying to save the world, you have to know that staying with them...well, it could be potentially dangerous."

The spark dimmed, but was rapidly revived as I thought about the fact that I could protect Maggie much better if I could get to know her better. And what better way to get to know her than to move in. My mind flashed for a mere second to the evil face of Rick Baker.

"We're dangerous to them too, Brooke. Well, I am, anyway. I'm a danger to you."

I thought of all that Rick could do. I knew he had connections that went way above and beyond him. He could ruin any of us.

"Peyton, sweetie, you aren't a danger to anyone, least of all me. I'm here by choice. I'm here because you're the best friend I've ever had, the only friend I could ever trust. I'm here because I love you and I don't ever want you to be alone."

I knew that. I really did. And she was right. If it weren't for Brooke Davis, I'd have been alone for a very long time.

"We'll stay with them. Only until we help Maggie. Then we'll go back to Tree Hill." I can't believe I said that.

"Tree Hill?" Brooke looked stunned, "Are you sure? What about Rick? He's out to get you Peyton. You said so yourself. We're both in danger. What if he wants to kill you?"

I swallowed the knot in my throat, "He wants to do a lot worse than kill me, Brooke."

Bianca opened the door to her apartment and was more than surprised to see JR pacing back and forth. He looked pale and rugged, as though sleep was a foreign concept to him. Bianca considered the past twenty-four hours and knew how foreign sleep could be.

"JR...what are you doing here?" She lowered her purse to the floor and noticed the far away look in his eyes. "JR?"

JR bowed his head and stopped pacing. He looked at Bianca with sad eyes, sadder than she had ever seen him be, "I know, Bianca. I know why."

Bianca shrugged and held up her hands, "You know "why" what, JR?

He shook his head and sat down on the sofa looking defeated, and uncomfortable, "I know why Maggie stayed with Jonathan. Even after everything he's done to her, I know why she stayed."

Maggie turned in the darkness and faced the now occupied doorway. She knew who it was before he could even speak. He wasn't going to hurt her while she lay in the hospital bed, and still fear rose up in her heart, tightening her chest and making her unable to breathe steadily. Her heartbeat quickened its pace.

"Maggie."

It was a simple statement. He spoke it so clearly, so devastatingly calm. Jonathan Lavery was evil in its purest form. Maggie said nothing, but listened carefully.

Jonathan glided into the room allowing the door to close behind him with a gentle swoosh. Maggie wasn't sure how he got past the guards, or the doctor, or the nurses, but he had and now she was at his mercy.

"Maggie." He whispered, his vile breath hot against Maggie's cheek as he bent to her ear. "I'm giving you a chance. A chance to get away from all of this, including me. You're only hope is to run. As far as you can go. I'll give you one year to hide from me, and then I'm coming to find you. Get better, heal up but if you try to press charges, the whole world will know what I know about you, and what I know about Bianca. So take the offer Mags. Leave town. So we can start fresh together later."

Maggie's tear was silent as it splashed against the pillow. She could hear him chuckle with smug satisfaction. She knew that he wasn't giving her much choice. She would have to run. Her only thoughts were whether or not she could involve Bianca in her escape or not.

Jonathan loved the way she smelled, especially when she was afraid. His heart pounded in his chest with the excitement of the new challenge he was giving himself. Cat and mouse. He knew he had the unfair advantage of knowing exactly how to find her whenever he could. His biggest challenge was waiting one year to find her.

Rick Baker pulled into Pine Valley knowing exactly what he needed to know. He would have the time of his life acquiring the object his boss commissioned him to obtain. He looked at the VW Bug and shook his head. Peyton's friend had unknowingly led him right to the motel door.

I had an eerie feeling creep up my back as I listened to Brooke talk about our future. I knew that it was about to grow dim. Too much had happened to fast. I had not even begun to cope with what had happened to me, to us. I missed my dad, I missed our friends in Tree Hill. But looking at Brooke,s o hopeful, so understanding, so damn positive that she and I could conquer the world, the ache within my heart faded and I knew I was never going to go back home.

I moved closer to the window and felt the cold draft from it's loose edging. It was only late September but the cold made it feel as though winter had settled in for a year. I looked at the cracks on the ceiling, mocking my shattered life. I looked back to Brooke as tears stung my eyes. Suddenly I couldn't breathe, I couldn't see straight. I think I was having a panic attack. I wouldn't know because I've never had one before. Brooke sat down next to me on the bed.

"Peyton? What's wrong Peyton?"

Before I could even think about what I wanted to say the words were falling out of my mouth, "Bad things are going to happen Brooke, really bad things."

Brooke just looked at me. What could she say to me, right? But I'll be damned if she didn't kneel in front of me take my hands and share her strength and calm with me.

"Then let them happen Peyton. No matter what happens, we'll beat it."

I shuffled in a shaken breath and glanced again at the window. I didn't know how, or when, but I knew just outside that thin pane of glass, a future so dark and terrifying was crouching, waiting for the right time to throw us to the ground.

They knew nothing about me at the time. Not Peyton, or Brooke, not Bianca, or Maggie, not JR, Jonathan, or Rick. No one knew anything about me, but I was there. I was hiding in the dark, warm recesses that were provided by the maker. One day they would all learn of me. Some would treasure me, some would fear me. I was the eternal damnation to one, the saving grace of another. And I was anything but simple.

TO BE CONTINUED


End file.
